Miakan-Garza Band seeks help to secure ancestral remains from UT Austin

The Miakan-Garza Band of the Coahuiltecan people are seeking to secure the remains of three ancestors unearthed in Hays County which are currently a part of the University of Texas at Austin’s collection of more than 2,400 native remains. 

In a letter signed by Brian Roberts, director of the Texas Archaeological Research Laboratory, the Miakan-Garza’s request was denied because UT was unable to identify a shared group identity between the remains and any group, according to the Miakan-Garza Band.  

“We asked for our ancestors more than four years ago,” said Dr. Mario Garza, cultural preservation officer for the Miakan-Garza Band. “After years of letters, emails, and meetings, we finally got a letter of denial on July 7th of this year.”