Natives To No Longer Get Free Entry To Anchorage Museum
The Anchorage Museum has decided to temporarily halt its initiative to offer free admission to Alaska Native individuals.
Initially announced earlier in the month, the policy would have permitted anyone self-identifying as Alaska Native to enter the museum without charge.
However, on January 16, the museum announced a suspension of this policy for further examination.
Janet Asaro, the museum’s spokeswoman, explained in a January 17 statement, “We are pausing to ensure our actions align with our goal to respect Indigenous peoples and facilitate access to their cultural heritage, while also considering wider community implications, museum standards, and legal requirements.”
The decision to grant free admission to Alaska Native people has met with mixed reactions from the community. An opinion piece in the Anchorage Daily News argued that the policy could be seen as discriminatory against non-Alaska Native individuals, potentially conflicting with the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
Conversely, the initiative has been lauded by some as a meaningful gesture to honor the cultures represented in the museum’s collections, which include Alaska Native art and artifacts.
The Native Village of Eklutna, Anchorage’s sole federally recognized tribe, celebrated the policy as “Great news for Anchorage’s original inhabitants!” in a Facebook post following the announcement.
Asaro declined to give further interviews on the matter, noting that the museum is comprehensively reassessing the policy. She mentioned that, to her knowledge, there has been no legal challenge to the proposed policy.
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