TULSA, Okla. — An ongoing issue picked up more traction here in Oklahoma.
While 2 News was listening to your stories at the fair, several Muscogee (Creek) Nation members came up to the listening booth to talk about a dilemma the Muscogee (Creek) Nation is facing. It all has to do with sacred grounds in Alabama.
Local News
Muscogee (Creek) officials embark on 'Journey for Justice' to sacred burial site
Raelynn Butler is the Muscogee (Creek) Nation’s Secretary of Culture and Humanities.
She said Hickory Ground in Alabama was protected as a historical site.
Some of it was then bought around 1980 by the Poarch Creek Indians, a tribe that was federally-recognized in 1984.
She said the Poarch Creek Indians started construction in the early 2000s and have since built a casino, but found several graves on the site after hiring Auburn University excavators.
According to the Federal Register, Auburn University did complete an inventory detailing findings in the excavation to abide by the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA).
They reported finding multiple human remains and being able to identify five of the bodies, along with funerary objects including items like beads, ceramics and fabrics.
Now, people like RaeLynn Butler are fighting to make sure those remains are given back to the Muscogee (Creek) Nation.
“We're in a time that we know and recognize that that's wrong and that there are laws against that," said Butler. "Everyone deserves respect."
This has all led to a petition between the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and Auburn University on Change.org, asking Auburn University to return ancestral remains and ceremonial items that were found on Hickory Ground.
Butler said based on the Muscogee Nation's own investigations and findings, more than 57 bodies have been exhumed from their rightful resting places along with important funerary items.
They have used this information to submit complaints and compile information for a lawsuit filed in 2012 to bring justice to the nation.
"We're requesting that Auburn return our ancestors," said Butler. "It's the moral, ethical and legal thing to do."
2 News reached out to Auburn university for comment several times, but the administration never reached back out.
The Poarch Creek Indians were also reached out to, but sent this statement, saying they will not be commenting on the issue:
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