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Other Grave Desecrations

Baha’I Grave and Site Desecrations

The Bahá'í Faith began in Iran in 1844, and the community has faced varying levels of persecution ever since. With a community of over 300,000 in the country, Bahá'ís are the largest religious minority in Iran. They are also the most severely persecuted, viewed by the government as heretics; a subversive political organization. Unwilling to recant their Faith, tens of thousands have lost their jobs, property, pensions, and access to education. Baha'is believe in obedience to government and non-violence, as well as non-involvement in politics.

Destruction and desecration of Bahá'í cemeteries and holy places is explicit proof of the Iranian government's intention to eradicate every trace of the Iranian Bahá'í community.

Native American Grave Desecrations

Native American burial sites are located throughout the United States. At one time there were as many as 12,500 in Minnesota alone. Due to the increasing development of land, more graves are being uncovered then ever before. However, today Minnesota contains only a few thousand remaining sites. Over time the burial mounds have eroded and are often mistaken for ordinary hills. Native American groups realize that construction is an increasing reality in our expanding world, but are devastated by the knowledge that some who find the graves ignore the sacredness of the remains. Since the first Europeans arrived in America, Indian remains have been treated as curiosities. Today there is still a problem with companies continuing construction on known Indian burial grounds, ill-treatment of remains and sacred artifacts, looting and vandalizing of known Indian grave sites, and the trafficking of Indian remains and artifacts.

The remains and artifacts of Native Americans are scattered in museums and private collections throughout the United States and the world. They are often seen as specimens and trophies rather than sacred objects. Recently, there has been an increasing number of methamphetamine addicted grave robbers desecrating graves, and looting and trafficking the remains and artifacts of Native Americans. Other problems consist of the use of Indian remains in scientific research. Some, such as the Wichita Tribe of Oklahoma, work with scientists to examine remains, but there are many tribes who see the research as disrespectful to their ancestors.

Jewish Grave Desecrations

Grave desecration is an issue which is especially widespread within the Jewish community. Persecution of Jews throughout history is well known in varying forms, but one variation which has garnered little attention relative to its frequency is the vandalism and destruction wrought on Jewish cemeteries around the world.

Grave desecration is especially painful for the practicing Jewish community because of its religious implications. Some say that "the treatment of a corpse with respect and dignity is an affirmation of belief in the body’s ultimate resurrection…conversely, treating a corpse disrespectfully implies a belief that death is final and irreversible." In the eyes of many, the idea that the physical home of the soul should be treated with respect amplifies the sorrow of the Holocaust, as most victims were never accorded proper Jewish burial.