Bandelier Legislation Would Establish Tribal Commission

Bandelier Legislation Would Establish Tribal Commission
U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) a member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, introduced legislation today to establish Bandelier National Park and Preserve. Senator Heinrich’s legislation seeks to protect in statute a strong relationship between the National Park Service and pueblos whose history and culture lies in Bandelier. The bill would establish a tribal commission, which would provide guidance for park management that reflects traditional and historical knowledge and values. http://bit.ly/2rsdWdx – Los Alamos Daily Post

Commentary: America’s Public Lands
Discounting such individual, non-commercial, even notional uses of public lands could eventually lead to their loss. When the Trump administration drastically shrank Bears Ears National Monument in Utah, it represented a win not for regular people, who protested the change by the millions, but for big business. The monument’s revised boundaries conveniently stripped protection from areas containing uranium, coal and oil deposits. The cuts also overturned a process that had specifically empowered local Native American nations, the original owners and stewards of all of America’s land, public and private. https://lat.ms/33qD9SW – Antonia Malchik in the Los Angeles Times

Commentary: New Mexico Rancher Supports Protecting Greater Chaco
The threats posed to our public lands from oil and gas development are only increasing, putting unique areas like the Greater Chaco Landscape, which is home to important cultural resources and Native populations in the region, at risk. This landscape, which includes Chaco Culture National Historical Park, has largely escaped the intensive development that surrounds my ranch and that has transformed so much of northwestern New Mexico’s magnificent public lands into an industrial wasteland. http://bit.ly/2OKCtCJ – Tweeti Blancett in the Santa Fe New Mexican

Commentary: Arizona’s Historical Edible Landscapes
The Sonoran Desert is a harsh environment. Weather conditions vary dramatically. It can be too hot, too cold, too wet, and too dry! These extremes make living here a unique experience. At the same time, these conditions have created one of the most biodiverse landscapes in the world. Humans are an important part of this diversity, as inhabitants of the Tucson basin have cultivated and domesticated crops for at least 4,000 years. I feel deeply connected to the region through the tastes, smells, and memories of the foods I ate as a child. https://s.si.edu/2pYrxck – Jesús M. García in Folklife (Smithsonian Institution)

Restoring Food Sovereignty in the Hopi Nation
Many Indigenous people and researchers refer to the ways their food culture was altered as “food colonization” or “culinary colonialism.” Ingredients central to western diets, such as milk, wheat, and refined sugar, are thought to pose a larger health threat to Native Americans than to the general population, and have led to widespread health issues such as high rates of gallstones, obesity, and diabetes. “If you don’t know Hopi, you wouldn’t know that we’re a food culture,” said Samantha Honani, the former program manager at the Natwani Coalition. “Our existence is based around our corn, and if we don’t have our corn in our homes, within our villages, within our ceremonies, we cease to exist as people. We are all intertwined with each other and make up the Hopi life way—it goes as far back as our creation story.” http://bit.ly/2XTG85o – Civil Eats

Archaeology Café Welcomes Jeremy Moss December 3
“In my time at Pecos I’ve learned how geography influences cultural trajectories, and how the landscape truly shapes experience, memory, and history. Pecos is well known through the work of A. V. Kidder, who was instrumental in the early development of Southwestern archaeology. The Pueblo of Jemez has strong connections to Pecos, one of their ancestral sites, and the place is alive with their ancestors.” Join us on Tuesday, December 3, as Jeremy M. Moss presents “Going Down to the Crossroads: A Brief History of Pecos National Historical Park.” We gather at The Loft Cinema (3233 E. Speedway Blvd., Tucson) around 5:30 p.m. to visit and enjoy food and beverages. Programs begin at 6:00 p.m. in Theatre 1. http://bit.ly/33k3gLf – Archaeology Southwest

Class at Stanford Explores Indigenous California
Anthropologist Mike Wilcox tells his students that if you try to understand a people or culture by studying cemeteries, then all you will find is death. Similarly, if students seeking to understand California’s Native American history do nothing more than study the missions created by the Spanish beginning in the late 1700s, then all they will find is the myth of the “perpetually vanishing native,” victimized by acculturation, military conquest and disease. Yet, how can it be that California today has the largest population of indigenous people in the country?  “There really isn’t a clear narrative that explains why California Natives, including the Muwekma Ohlone most associated with this area, are still here,” he said. https://stanford.io/2pXNckS – Stanford News

Blog: The 1996 Excavations at Historic Blocks 72 and 73, Phoenix, Arizona
Plans for a new United States Federal Courthouse in Phoenix led to testing and data recovery by Desert Archaeology in 1996. The project area consisted of two of the original downtown blocks, Blocks 72 and 73. What did we find? http://bit.ly/2Dgp2Fh – Homer Thiel in the Field Journal, blog of Desert Archaeology, Inc.

Essay: Homo sapiens, Human
We bump over cobbles and boulders along the two-track road. Five of us pour out of the Ford F-150, and we begin our morning rituals around the tailgate. I take my last swig of coffee. She clips a 50-meter tape onto her backpack. He shuffles forms into his clip board. https://spiralorb.net/fifteen/cowell.html – Shannon Cowell in Spiral Orb

Save the Date/Call for Abstracts: Sonoran Symposium, March 2–12, 2020
Organized by representatives from the Tohono O’odham Nation, Mexico and the United States, the symposium will offer presentations and dialogue about the dynamics of natural and cultural ecology, environmental challenges, and their relationships to peoples—past and present—living in the Sonoran Desert. Abstracts due November 30. https://www.sonoransymposium.com/

El Paso Museum of Archaeology Hosts Two Special Events November 30
“This year the museum of archaeology is excited to share two different Native American art forms with our community,” said Museum of Archaeology Director Jeff Romney. “Through pottery and storytelling, our guests can see how these traditions are passed down through generations to preserve this part of Native American culture and heritage.” http://bit.ly/2qF3H5M – El Paso Herald-Post

Job Opportunity, Swift River Environmental Services LLC
Swift River is looking for a Project Director with excellent survey experience to lead a 10,000-acre survey in southern Arizona and produce a quality report. The successful candidate will be directing fieldwork and responsible for the production of the report. Swift River is headquartered in Littleton, CO; however, location for this position following fieldwork is negotiable. This position must be filled no later than January 1, 2020. Candidates must have an M.A. degree in anthropology/archaeology, be able to do field work, and have experience writing quality survey and/or testing reports. Experience in the desert Southwest is preferred, but good experience anywhere in the U.S. is acceptable. Swift River offers a complete salary and benefits program, premium wages, and a completion bonus for an excellent project. This candidate will also be mentored by an archaeologist with over 30 years of experience in the field of CRM and who was the recipient of the 2019 SAA Award for Excellence in Cultural Resources Management. Contact Duane Peter, dpheritageconsulting@gmail.com

Lecture Opportunity, Phoenix AZ
The Phoenix Chapter, AAS, invites you to join us in the Pueblo Grande Museum Community Room, 4619 E. Washington Street, on Tuesday, December 10, to hear Todd W. Bostwick, Ph.D., talk about “Angkor Wat and the Khmer Empire of Cambodia.” Angkor Wat is one of a remarkable group of ancient stone temples built between the 8th &13th centuries AD in Cambodia and Thailand. Our Holiday Potluck begins at 6:00 p.m., with the presentation beginning about 7:30 p.m. If joining us for the potluck, please bring a side dish or dessert to share. Call Pueblo Grande Museum at 602-495-0901 for more information. https://azarchsoc.wildapricot.org/phoenix

Tour Opportunity, Casa Grande Ruins National Monument AZ
Join us for sunset and experience the wonder of Casa Grande Ruins National Monument after hours. On December 12, official sunset time is at 5:20 p.m. The public is invited to experience dusk in the desert and to see the ruins as the sun sets behind them. A short program will begin at 5:15 p.m., then time will be allowed until 7:00 p.m. for photography, self-guided exploration, and questions. Those who wish to attend this event must be inside the gate at 1100 W Ruins Drive, Coolidge AZ, before 5:00 p.m. – Casa Grande Ruins National Monument (press release)

Lecture Opportunity, Casa Grande Ruins National Monument AZ
On December 4, Casa Grande Ruins will host Dominic Henry as part of its annual speaker series. The presentation, “The Dimension of Uncomfortable Truths,” will begin at noon in the Casa Grande Ruins visitor center theater at 1100 W Ruins Drive, Coolidge AZ. Henry will discuss how historic preservation preserves significant built environments and places that tell the rich history of our Nation’s past. This includes history that can be difficult to discuss and understand. Despite these circumstances, these events are instilled in the fabrication of our Nation’s past. Built environments that represent difficult histories, receive the same level of preservation care and documentation. Many are located in the national parks system and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This presentation will examine historic buildings and sites that accentuate historic battles, imprisonment and segregation. The Sand Creek Massacre Site (Colorado), Eastern State Penitentiary (Philadelphia) and Bullion Plaza School (Miami, AZ) will be discussed. – Casa Grande Ruins National Monument (press release)

We’re happy to help get the word out, but we’re not mind readers! Please submit news, book announcements, and events at this link for consideration: https://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/submit-to-sat/

Questions? sat-editor@archaeologysouthwest.org