Bruce Afran stated, “While we are disappointed by the Supreme Court’s decision not to hear our case, we remain committed to challenging the Smithsonian’s power to independently create its own art repatriation policy without public hearing or Congressional approval.”
A spokesperson for the Smithsonian pointed out, “the plaintiffs-Restitution Study Group-lost the case in district court, the appeals court affirmed and the Supreme Court declined to hear the case,” confirming that the matter is concluded.
The Plaintiffs claimed that while the Smithsonian serves as a trust to all Americans, they should also be regarded as holding a trust for descendants of enslaved Africans—in this case, specifically, those with descendants from Nigeria who were subject to slave trafficking by the Benin Royal Court.
We requested that we be included in the discussion. When I say we, I mean descendants of enslaved Africans who can trace themselves using DNA back to the Benin Kingdom and to Nigeria and the slave trade there, which was largely controlled by the Benin Kingdom for 300 years.
We all are DNA descendants. DNA research has verified that 93% of descendants of enslaved Africans in the United States have DNA from Nigeria. 82% of Caribbeans have this DNA. Right now, it’s not clear what the number is from Brazil.
