WHEREAS the Native American Archives section “serves as a forum to educate archivists on the complexities and beauty of Native American archives of the Western Hemisphere and as a source of communication and inspiration for archivists working with Native American collections;” and
WHEREAS this section was formed by member petition and approved by a unanimous vote of the Council on August 13, 2005; and
WHEREAS they work to keep their membership and the wider archives community informed of news, standards, resources, and issues related to Native American archives, archivists, and collections; and
WHEREAS in 2020 the section granted five scholarships to Native American and tribal archivists which provided both a one-year membership to SAA and registration at the 2020 Annual Meeting; and
WHEREAS in 2021 the steering committee (Diana Marsh, Selena Ortega-Chiolero, Rose Buchanan, Brian Carpenter, Samantha Meier, Rachel Menyuk, Lotus Norton-Wisla, Katherine Satriano, and Nathan Sowry) and volunteers (Vina Begay, Eric Hung, Liza Posas, Jonathan Pringle, Melissa Stoner) submitted extensive and thoughtful comments and feedback on the draft of the SAA Work Plan on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility; and
WHEREAS they recommended to Council the creation of an Archival Repatriation Committee charged with ensuring "that the organization’s services, activities, policies, communications, and products support archivists in repatriating and receiving archival materials,” which was approved by a unanimous vote of the Council on May 18, 2022;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Native American Archives Section be honored with a 2022 SAA Council Resolution for their work toward advocating for and supporting archivists working with Native American collections.
Presented August 27, 2022.