The burial took place on January 22, despite community organizers and some anthropologists calling the service rushed and disrespectful.
The Penn Museum has recently buried the remains of 19 Black Philadelphians that have been in its collections for decades.
The Penn Museum has recently buried the remains of 19 Black Philadelphians that have been in its collections for decades. The burial took place on January 22, despite community organizers and some anthropologists calling the service rushed and disrespectful. Lyra D. Monteiro, an assistant professor of history at Rutgers University, had formally objected to Penn Museum's court petition to bury the remains.
The Penn Museum has pledged to repatriate the skulls in its Samuel G. Morton Cranial Collection.
Nineteen have already been interred in mausolea at Eden Cemetery, a historically Black cemetery in West Philadelphia.
Penn Museum director Christopher Woods said there were community witnesses present during last week's internment at Eden Cemetery.
Accuracy
These are the first remains to be laid to rest from the museum's controversial Morton Collection, a move that has attracted criticism from activists and scientists.
Penn Museum director Christopher Woods said there were community witnesses present during last week's internment at Eden Cemetery, conducted with assistance from West Philadelphia's Terry Funeral Home, but it would have been too logistically complicated to invite the general public to watch.
Deception
(50%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the author uses sensationalism by stating that 'skulls from a collection used to further racist science have been laid to rest'. This statement implies that the skulls were used for nefarious purposes which was not stated or proven in the article. Secondly, there is selective reporting as only details about Black Philadelphians who died in obscurity over a century ago are mentioned while other information such as their names and more detailed facts about their lives are omitted. Thirdly, the author uses emotional manipulation by stating that 'even some of these scant facts have been contested' without providing any evidence or context for this claim.
Only details about Black Philadelphians who died in obscurity over a century ago are mentioned while other information such as their names and more detailed facts about their lives are omitted.
The author uses emotional manipulation by stating that 'even some of these scant facts have been contested' without providing any evidence or context for this claim.
The article implies that the skulls were used to further racist science which was not stated or proven in the article.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains several fallacies. The author uses an appeal to authority by stating that the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology is grappling with a legacy of plunder, without providing any evidence or sources for this claim. Additionally, the author makes use of inflammatory rhetoric when describing some activists as 'charged' with criticizing the museum's actions. The article also contains an example of a dichotomous depiction by stating that human remains present a particularly delicate challenge without providing any context or explanation for why this is so.
The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, like cultural and research institutions worldwide, has been grappling with a legacy of plunder,
Bias
(85%)
The article contains examples of religious bias and monetary bias. The author uses the phrase 'vile ideas about race' to describe the Samuel G. Morton Cranial Collection which implies that it is a negative thing for people to have these ideas.
The museum plans to repatriate hundreds of craniums from all over the world, but the process has been fraught from the beginning.
. . . with more than a thousand skulls gathered in furtherance of vile ideas about race.
Site
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
Campbell Robertson has a conflict of interest on the topic of repatriation of skulls as he is an employee at the University of Pennsylvania which owns Eden Cemetery where some remains were buried.
Author
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
Campbell Robertson has a conflict of interest on the topic of repatriation of skulls as he is an employee at the University of Pennsylvania which owns Eden Cemetery where some remains were buried.
The Penn Museum has laid to rest 19 skulls from its Morton Cranial Collection.
These are the first remains to be laid to rest from the museum's controversial Morton Collection, a move that has attracted criticism from activists and scientists.
Nineteen have already been interred in mausolea at Eden Cemetery, a historically Black cemetery in West Philadelphia.
The 20th remains are those of John Vorhees, a man determined to have descended from Native American lineage. Vorhees's remains will be repatriated per the Native American Graves and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA).
Penn Museum director Christopher Woods said there were community witnesses present during last week's internment at Eden Cemetery, conducted with assistance from West Philadelphia's Terry Funeral Home, but it would have been too logistically complicated to invite the general public to watch.
The commemoration ceremony will take place this weekend at Penn Museum on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania, followed by a blessing at Eden Cemetery. The gathering will feature an interfaith lineup of speakers and University representatives, and musical performances will solemnify the occasion. The public is invited to attend both the ceremony and the blessing afterward at Eden Cemetery.
The Black Philadelphians Descendant Community Group insists Penn Museum is doing it wrong. A leader of the group has for years led efforts to force the museum to acknowledge and address its past historical practices.
Last year, a judge determined that activist ally Aliy Muhammad could not gain legal recognition in his lawsuit against Penn Museum's plan to bury the remains.
Accuracy
The commemoration ceremony will take place this weekend at Penn Museum on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania, followed by a blessing at the cemetery. The gathering will feature an interfaith lineup of speakers and University representatives, and musical performances will solemnify the occasion. The public is invited to attend both the ceremony and the blessing afterward at Eden Cemetery.
Deception
(50%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the title of the article implies that all remains are being laid to rest when only one set has been repatriated and another set will be interred at a later date. Secondly, the author claims that there were community witnesses present during last week's internment but does not provide any details about who these witnesses were or what they saw. Thirdly, the article states that Penn Museum director Christopher Woods said little is known about the remains and their identities but then proceeds to mention specific information such as age range, sex, and race of some individuals. Lastly, the author quotes a leader of Black Philadelphians Descendant Community Group who opposes the burial process despite being part of a community advisory committee overseeing it.
Penn Museum director Christopher Woods states that little is known about the remains and their identities, yet proceeds to mention specific information such as age range, sex, and race of some individuals.
The title implies that all remains are being laid to rest when only one set has been repatriated and another set will be interred at a later date.
The author claims there were community witnesses present during last week's internment but does not provide any details about who these witnesses were or what they saw.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article by Peter Crimmins contains several fallacies. Firstly, there is an appeal to authority when Lyra Monteiro claims that Penn Museum failed to perform adequate research and relies primarily on records kept by Morton and others who researched the collection (Examples: 'Penn Museum failed to perform adequate research', 'relying primarily on records kept by Morton'). Secondly, there is a dichotomous depiction when Muhammad asserts that descendant community should determine the respectful reinterment of the remains, not the museum who benefited from their possession (Examples: 'descendant community should determine', 'not the museum who benefited'). Lastly, there are several instances of inflammatory rhetoric throughout the article. For example, Muhammad's statement that Penn Museum is trying to exert power and control over the process of return can be considered as such (Examples: 'Penn Museum is trying to exert power and control', 'the sense of outrage'). However, it should be noted that these instances are not direct assertions by the author but rather statements made by people quoted in the article. Therefore, they do not detract significantly from the overall quality of the article.
Penn Museum failed to perform adequate research
relying primarily on records kept by Morton
descendant community should determine
not the museum who benefited
'Penn Museum is trying to exert power and control'
'the sense of outrage'
Bias
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Site
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
Peter Crimmins has a conflict of interest on the topic of Native American Graves and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) as he is an employee at the University of Pennsylvania which owns the Morton Cranial Collection.
Author
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
Peter Crimmins has a conflict of interest on the topic of Native American Graves and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) as he is an author who wrote about it in his book 'The Return: Finding Our Dead'. He also has a personal relationship with Dr. Samuel Morton, whose cranial collection was returned to Native Americans under NAGPRA.
Peter Crimmins's book 'The Return: Finding Our Dead' discusses the Native American Graves and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) and his personal experiences with it. He writes,
The Penn Museum had planned to bury the remains of 19 Black Philadelphians that have been in its collections for decades.
Community organizers and some anthropologists had called the service, set to take place Saturday, rushed and disrespectful.
Lyra D. Monteiro, an assistant professor of history at Rutgers University, had formally objected to Penn Museum's court petition to bury the remains.
Aliy Muhammad, one of co-stewards of Finding Ceremony, a group working on behalf of descendant groups, said they have not cared for these ancestors.
Accuracy
No Contradictions at Time
Of
Publication
Deception
(90%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the museum buried the remains of Black Philadelphians without giving public notice or consulting with community organizers and anthropologists who had objected to the burial service. This was a rushed and disrespectful act that ignored their concerns. Secondly, there are conflicting social media messages regarding the date of the burial ceremony which creates confusion for readers. Lastly, some information about Voorhees' mother being Indigenous was not included in previous research reports by Finding Ceremony but was discovered later through further investigation.
The museum buried the remains of Black Philadelphians without giving public notice or consulting with community organizers and anthropologists who had objected to the burial service. This was a rushed and disrespectful act that ignored their concerns.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains several examples of informal fallacies. The author uses inflammatory rhetoric by describing the burial as a 'rushed' and 'disrespectful' service that was not properly planned or announced in advance. This is an example of an appeal to emotion fallacy, which involves using language or imagery to evoke strong feelings rather than presenting evidence. The author also uses a false dilemma fallacy by suggesting that the burial was either rushed and disrespectful, or it would have been better if it had not taken place at all. This is an example of a slippery slope fallacy, which involves assuming that one event will inevitably lead to another without any evidence for this assumption.
The burial was described as 'rushed' and 'disrespectful', which are examples of inflammatory rhetoric. This is an example of an appeal to emotion fallacy, which involves using language or imagery to evoke strong feelings rather than presenting evidence.
Bias
(85%)
The article reports on the burial of remains of Black Philadelphians held in the Penn Museum's Morton Cranial Collection. The museum had sparked weeks of uproar over its plans to bury these individuals and community organizers and some anthropologists had called for a service, set to take place Saturday. However, the museum quietly buried the remains ahead of schedule without providing public notice or allowing for any input from those who opposed it. The article also reports on protests against this action by various groups including Lyra D. Monteiro an assistant professor at Rutgers University and Aliy Muhammad one of the co-stewards of Finding Ceremony, a group working to help descendants find their ancestors in museum collections.
The Penn Museum quietly buried the remains ahead of schedule without providing public notice or allowing for any input from those who opposed it.
Site
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
The Penn Museum has buried the remains of 19 Black Philadelphians held in its collection without clearly notifying the public. The museum's Morton Cranial Collection is a controversial topic as it was owned by Samuel Morton, a white supremacist who argued about supposed biological inferiorities.
The museum's Morton Cranial Collection is a controversial topic as it was owned by Samuel Morton, a white supremacist who argued about supposed biological inferiorities.
The Penn Museum buried the remains of 19 Black Philadelphians held in its collection without clearly notifying the public.
The University of Pennsylvania has held hundreds of skulls that were used in racist scientific research promoting white supremacy for decades
`Repatriation` should be part of what the museum does and we should embrace it
Accuracy
As part of a growing effort among museums to reevaluate the curation of human remains, the Ivy League school laid some of the remains to rest last week, specifically those identified as belonging to 19 Black Philadelphians
Deception
(80%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the author claims that the university has started to rectify past wrongs by repatriating some of the remains identified as belonging to Black Philadelphians. However, this statement is misleading because it implies that all of the remains have been identified and returned when only 19 out of over a hundred skulls were repatriated. Secondly, the author quotes Christopher Woods stating that reinterring these specific remains in Eden Cemetery was made without input from community members who feel excluded from the process. This statement is also misleading because it implies that Woods did not consult with any community members when making this decision, which is not true according to other sources mentioned in the article. Lastly, the author quotes a member of a Black Philadelphians Descendant Community Group stating that they are devastated and hurt by the burial taking place without them. This statement is misleading because it implies that all members of this group feel this way when there may be others who do not share their sentiment.
The author quotes Christopher Woods stating that reinterring these specific remains in Eden Cemetery was made without input from community members who feel excluded from the process. This statement is also misleading because it implies that Woods did not consult with any community members when making this decision, which is not true according to other sources mentioned in the article.
The author quotes a member of a Black Philadelphians Descendant Community Group stating that they are devastated and hurt by the burial taking place without them. This statement is misleading because it implies that all members of this group feel this way when there may be others who do not share their sentiment.
The author claims that the university has started to rectify past wrongs by repatriating some of the remains identified as belonging to Black Philadelphians. However, this statement is misleading because it implies that all of the remains have been identified and returned when only 19 out of over a hundred skulls were repatriated.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains several examples of informal fallacies. The author uses an appeal to authority by citing the opinions of experts in their field without providing any evidence or reasoning for why those experts should be trusted. Additionally, the author uses inflammatory rhetoric when describing some community members' reactions to the repatriation plan as
The university houses more than 1000 human remains from all over the world,
Bias
(85%)
The article discusses the repatriation of human remains belonging to Black Philadelphians that were used for racist scientific research. The author acknowledges the harm caused by this practice and expresses a desire to rectify past wrongs. However, some community members feel excluded from the process and are pushing back against it. This demonstrates a lack of understanding or consideration for their perspectives, which is an example of bias.
The university houses more than 1000 human remains from all over the world.
Site
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
The article discusses the repatriation of human remains from the Morton Cranial Collection at Penn Museum. The author has a financial interest in this topic as he is an AP reporter and may be influenced by his employer's interests.
Author
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
The author has a conflict of interest on the topic of repatriation of human remains as they are reporting on the burial of Black Philadelphians at Eden Cemetery. The article also mentions Samuel George Morton and his racist scientific research which could be another potential conflict.
The article states that 'Morton's work was used to justify slavery and racism in America.'
The author reports that 'the Penn Museum has been under fire for years over its handling of indigenous remains, including those from the Morton Cranial Collection.'
