11Parker was a representative of the Makah in a delegation of Native Americans from Western Washington who traveled to Japan in March to learn about the Ainu culture.
A delegation of Ainu had visited each of the tribes in December.
“When they came up and visited, we really enjoyed them,” Parker said.
“We had an excellent exchange of culture just in the brief time that we came together at my home and at the Makah museum.”
The Makah Cultural and Research Center in Neah Bay displays artifacts that help describe the life of Makah people before European explorers arrival.
The permanent exhibits include artifacts from the Ozette collection, uncovered from a Makah village partially buried by a mudslide nearly 500 years ago.
As Parker traveled in Japan to learn about the culture there, she was able to visit many of their museums and view some of their ceremonies and taste the food.
Many aspects comparable
“The most striking thing to me is there are so many similarities between us,” she said.
“They, of course, hunt for land and sea mammals much in the same way we do.
“The implementation of how those are used in their material culture is also interestingly similar.”
She said that at the museums, she viewed clothing and bags made of elm bark that are much like those the Makah once made of cedar bark.
“I was also really interested in how they also made shoes out of salmon skin,” she said.
“They crafted roses out of salmon skin and they look very similar to how some of our artists make roses out of cedar bark.”
The Burke Museum at the University of Washington in Seattle organized the international exchange.
In 2008, the Ainu were formally recognized by Japan’s government as Japan’s “first peoples.”
In an effort to support the revitalization of the indigenous Ainu culture of Hokkaido, Japan, the Burke Museum received a $120,000 grant from the Museums and Communities Collaboration Abroad program last year to coordinate a cultural exchange between the Ainu and Northwest Coast tribal groups, in communities such as the Makah, Squaxin Island, Suquamish, House of Welcome Longhouse, Duwamish and Tulalip.
The grant focuses on the shared history of sea and canoe traditions between the Ainu and Native Americans.
“We had no idea, really, the extent to which these indigenous peoples have experienced the same histories — their ancestors relocated, enslaved and made to feel ashamed of their heritage as indigenous peoples,” said Burke Museum curator Deana Dartt-Newton.
“However, the sense of pride and excitement during the exchange was incredible and the empowerment as indigenous peoples coming together overshadowed the grief.”
10-member delegation
Traveling to Sapporo, Nibutani, Akan and Shiraroi, which are the four major regions of Ainu cultural revitalization, the 10-member delegation included several tribal representatives.
Along with Parker were Jason Gobin of the Tulalip, Yvonne Peterson of the Chehalis and Marilyn Jones of the Suquamish.
Dartt-Newton and Robin Wright, another curator at the museum, led the group.
“It is really important to note that this puts the Makah Cultural and Research Center on a global platform,” Parker said.
Through the trip, Parker, who helped with the excavation of the Ozette site, was able to share information about the revitalization of the Makah.
“The museum is represented throughout the Pacific Rim at a very high level,” she said.
“The [Makah museum] has been one of the oldest tribal museums and has been able to assist many other tribal museums that are just getting started.
“That is now happening on an international scale.
“It is very rewarding for both us and those that we’ve exchanged with.”
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Reporter Paige Dickerson can be reached at 360-417-3535 or at paige. dickerson@peninsuladailynews.com.
