A tense exchange at Tuesday’s Haines Borough Assembly meeting revealed there may be more to the Sheldon Museum and Cultural Center’s name change than has been publicly discussed.
Assembly member Margaret Friedenauer broached the issue, asking if the name had officially changed.
According to the museum’s minutes from the Oct. 14 meeting, the museum’s board voted 5-1 to change the name to the Haines Museum and Cultural Center. Member Anastasia Wiley was opposed.
“When I read the minutes, I see that the board voted to change the name, and then at the next meeting, they didn’t vote to reconsider it. So I kind of took that to mean that the name is going through the process of being changed,” Friedenauer said.
When asked to clarify, museum director Helen Alten said “it has officially changed.”
“It has officially changed. Whether that gets redacted… (the board) chose not to discuss it in the last board meeting and not to redact it, and I suspect they won’t redact it.”
Assembly member Mike Case interjected, bringing up a conversation that he said he and several borough officials had with Alten at a Nov. 10 event at the museum.“She said that she had heard that a lot of Natives didn’t like the (Sheldon Museum and Cultural Center) name. Is that correct? Is that what you said?” Case asked.
“I’ve heard from different parts of the community that the name wasn’t–” Alten attempted to respond before being interrupted by Case.
“No, is that what you said to us? That a lot of Native people didn’t like the name, on that day?”
Alten paused. “I don’t recall what I said on that day. I apologize.”
“Well, I think you did,” Case continued. “Then Bill Thomas and the Mayor (Jan Hill) were both there and said as representatives of the Native community that they had not heard anybody feel that way. And then I understood you to say that maybe it was the Natives from Klukwan.”
Case went on to say that he spoke with a Klukwan resident who was also present at the event, and that man hadn’t heard of any objections to the museum’s existing name.
“I think there was some misunderstandings and I would hate to see you go through and change that name – which many people in this community like – without looking into it some more,” Case said.
Before the exchange with Case, Alten said staff had recommended waiting to deal with the name change issue until February, but the board didn’t heed that recommendation. “They wanted to put in a new sign and they said, ‘Well, if we’re going to change the name, we should just do it so that we don’t pay for two signs.’”
Alten said the board has been discussing a potential name change for “decades.”
“Now (board members) are realizing there should have been more of a process with the community and getting input, so they are talking about how to make that process, whether it should be a survey,” or some other form of public input, like a meeting, Alten said.
The minutes from the Oct. 14 museum board indicate the name change issue was being discussed under “ongoing business,” and that the name “need(s) to change now for next year’s advertising.” Suggestions included the Haines Museum and Cultural Center, Haines Museum of History and Culture, and Deishu Museum.
The board will meet at 2:30 p.m. at the museum Wednesday, Dec. 16.