University of Michigan Museum of Anthropological Achaelogy renews commitment to Grasac Network.

by Dr. Michael Galaty, Andrea Blaser, and Jim Moss.

The UM Museum of Anthropological Archaeology (UMMAA) is delighted to renew their relationship with GRASAC. Founded in 1922 at the University of Michigan, UMMAA (previously the Museum of Anthropology) is a research collection without a formal exhibit space: our mission focuses on education, research, and collaborative opportunities. Our institution curates over 3 million items collected from around the globe over the past 150 years, representing over a million years of cultural heritage.
 
UMMAA is looking forward to expanding their current contributions to the GKS. Nearly 100 records for baskets in the UMMAA collection were added in 2018, thanks to the expertise provided by members and staff of the Ziibiwing Center during the creation of the collaborative exhibit Wiidanokiindiwag (They Work with Each Other). Efforts are now underway to photograph more of our Great Lakes material, including a recent acquisition of Great Lakes basketry and archival material; our hope is that these will be ready to be shared to the GRASAC database in early 2022.
 
We acknowledge that our university stands, like almost all property in the United States, on lands obtained through the dispossession of indigenous peoples. The University of Michigan is located on the traditional territory of the Anishinaabe, Wyandot (Wyandotte), Seneca, Delaware, Shawanese (Shawnee), Miami, Sauk and Fox, and others. As a Museum, we work to hold the University of Michigan and ourselves accountable in sustaining mutually beneficial partnerships with Indigenous peoples, communities, and nations that recognize and fulfill their rights and aspirations.