New Orleans holds burial of repatriated African Americans whose skulls were used in racist research

NEW ORLEANS AP New Orleans celebrated the return and burial of the remains of African American people whose skulls had been sent to Germany for racist research practices in the th century On Saturday a multifaith memorial institution including a jazz funeral one of the city s bulk distinct traditions paid tribute to the humanity of those coming home to their final resting place at the Hurricane Katrina Memorial We ironically know these because of the horrific thing that happened to them after their death the desecration of their bodies stated Monique Guillory president of Dillard University a historically Black private liberal arts college which spearheaded the receipt of the remains on behalf of the city This is literally an opportunity for us to recognize and commemorate the humanity of all of these individuals who would have been denied you know such a respectful send-off and final burial The people are all considered to have passed away from natural causes between and at Charity Hospital which served people of all races and classes in New Orleans during the height of white supremacist oppression in the s The hospital shuttered following Hurricane Katrina in The remains sat in wooden boxes in the university s chapel during a arrangement Saturday that also included music from the Kumbuka African Drum and Dance Collective A New Orleans physician provided the skulls of the people to a German researcher engaged phrenological studies the debunked belief that a person s skull could determine innate racial characteristics All kinds of experiments were done on Black bodies living and dead disclosed Dr Eva Baham a historian who led Dillard University s efforts to repatriate the individuals remains People who had no agency over themselves In the University of Leipzig in Germany reached out to the City of New Orleans to find a way to return the remains Guillory declared The University of Leipzig did not straightaway respond to a request for comment It is a demonstration of our own morality here in New Orleans and in Leipzig with the professors there who needed to do something to restore the dignity of these people Baham announced Dillard University researchers say more digging remains to be done including to try and track down accomplishable descendants They believe it is likely that selected of the people had been in recent days freed from slavery These were really poor indigent people in the end of the th century but they had names they had addresses they walked the streets of the city that we love Guillory announced We all deserve a recognition of our humanity and the value of our lives Source