The researcher pursued a case study on the Na Iwi O Na Kupuna O Mokapu v. Dalton repatriation case in which 1,582 Native Hawaiian human remains were excavated and relocated from a Mokapu burial site to the Bishop Museum.  This site in Oahu is known as the most disturbed burial site in Hawaii due to the mass relocation.  After the passing of NAGPRA, the U.S. Marine Corps Base Hawaii assisted the museum in the inventory and repatriation of the remains.  A Native Hawaiian tribe filed a lawsuit against the Secretary of the Department of Navy and the Bishop Museum, claiming the Navy “failed to return expeditiously the Mokapu remains.”  They also claimed that illegal scientific research was conducted on the Mokapu remains.

The researcher, Greer, used a case study research logic.  She utilized reports of acts, behaviors, and events and collected them through public and private records.  Greer analyzed the data in a qualitative analysis.  Her research question was, “How did the Na Iwi O Na Kupuna O Mokapu v. Dalton case reveal a disconnection between the intent and the process of NAGPRA?”  Her broader research topic was the repatriation of Native Hawaiian remains.

This was an interesting case study, and I think the researcher provided thorough analyses of the data.  She provided historical research on other Native Hawaiian cases of repatriation.  She evaluated how the repatriation process can be laborious or even humiliating.

Greer, E. Sunny. “Na Wai E Ho‘ōla i Nā Iwi? Who Will Save the Bones: Native Hawaiians and the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.” Asian-Pacific Law and Policy   Journal 14, no. 1, 34-52.