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Collapse of ethics: The case against Chagnon and Neel Posted: April 22, 2002 - 11:30AM EST by: Robert Taylor / Staff Reporter / Indian Country Today During the recent "Tragedy in the Amazon" conference at Cornell University, a panel of anthropologists and journalists took the offensive on the controversy over Chagnon and Neel�s collection of Yanomami samples, the alleged violation of academic standards associated with the collection, the pair�s potential role in the epidemic and the failure of the AAA task force on the issue to censure them. Many AAA members have even come out in support of Neel and Chagnon, but have failed to take into consideration Yanomami viewpoints. "The American Anthropological Association report of what Chagnon [and Neel] did is a whitewash," said panelist David Maybury-Lewis, anthropologist and president of Cultural Survival. "Chagnon is a Houdini." Maybury-Lewis said Chagnon tricked individual Yanomami into revealing the names of the dead, normally a strict taboo in the tribe. Chagnon also is said to have manipulated alliances by distributing trade goods in a manner that resulted in competition and conflict between villages and staging acts of violence in films on the expedition. These conflicts and raids periodically became uncharacteristically violent for the Yanomami, which led to Chagnon "misrepresenting" and "libeling" the tribe as the "violent people," said Maybury-Lewis. Chagnon�s own papers and journals reveal that he participated in these incidents of violence by personally providing transportation to and from these raids during the 1968 expedition. He attacked the credibility of Yanomami elders and leaders and totally disregarded the wishes and input of the indigenous cultures he studied, say his critics. Shockingly, critics say, Chagnon even provided firearms and ammunition to competing factions, a fact confirmed in his own records. All these activities clearly violate the ethical standards of the AAA, numerous conference participants said. They dismissed as irrelevant the defense that the rules were not codified until after the 1968 expedition as well as the statement that Chagnon lived up to the standards of the time. Chagnon and Neel would have been subject to the post- World War II Nuremberg Accords on experimentation on human subjects and the Helsinki Accords on human rights� said conference participants. "His record would shame any decent anthropologist, but would also shame any decent human being," said Maybury-Lewis. Visit and show your support for the Grass Roots Oyate http://members.tripod.com/GrassRootsOyate Clemency for Leonard Peltier. Sign the Petition. http://petitiononline.com/Release/petition.html ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?b1ddNB.b2HgmN Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
