A Ketchikan man pleaded guilty earlier this month to federal charges along with a lengthy scheme to market counterfeit Alaska Native souvenirs manufactured in the Philippines.
The plea bargain comes after numerous convictions this summer arising from a plan to sell unlabeled goods from two companies located in Ketchikan.
“It happens more frequently than we’d like,” said Jack Schmidt who was the Assistant U.S. Attorney who prosecuted the cases.
Tourism is recovering from the COVID-19 virus as is the demand for souvenirs. Shops on the Southeast Alaska waterfront, authentic Alaskan-made goods are priced at many times more than mass-produced items made in other countries The threat of counterfeit products is believed to be increasing.
“The tempting factor is never far away,” Schmidt said.
The United States, souvenirs sold as authentic goods from tribes or tribal members and labelled as being from American Indian and Alaska Native individuals are protected under the Federal Indian Arts and Crafts Act.
The law prohibits to sell and market artwork that is falsely labelled as being created by or by an Alaska Native artist or a Native tribe. The law can be enforced through the federal Indian Arts and Crafts Board which receives complaints and investigates any violations.
It may appear to be a minor infraction Attorney Jacob Adams, but the longer-term consequences are significant.
“Allowing products that aren’t genuine to be sold on the market, and ultimately dominate a number of regions, it creates the environment less suited to Indigenous artisans to sustain themselves off of their traditions and creates a variety of negative consequences,” Adams said.
“If people aren’t able to use their culture, or make a living from their heritage … that discourages future generations to take up these arts and crafts,” he said.
The last time we heard from him was three years ago. Adams representing Sealaska Heritage Institute the Sealaska Heritage Institute, an Southeast Alaska Native cultural group along with additional plaintiffs an action with Neiman Marcus. It was a high-end retailer. The time was when Neiman Marcus offered an “Ravenstail” coat, which plaintiffs claimed was a copyrighted creation of the Native weaver.
The parties eventually resolved the case through an unannounced settlement.
The statistics for the magnitude of the problem are difficult to find, Adams and others said.
In 2011 The federal Government Accountability Office concluded that it was not possible to assess how large the illicit market based on the available data, but they noted that of the 649 complaints lodged with the Indian Arts and Crafts Board between 2006 and 2010, nearly 25% involved alleged violation of the federal laws.
Anecdotally and in the past, artists and officials highlighted the amount of legal actions and prosecutions of sellers of fake goods as an indication of the problem and the steps being taken to address it through an act called the Indian Arts and Crafts Act.
“To an amount, and for vast part we’ve seen increasing use of the law both on the private and criminal sphere in recent times and in the last decade or as long,” Adams said, speaking of the law.
This spring in The U.S. Attorney’s office in Seattle brought charges against one man who was selling counterfeit American Indian and Alaska Native art work in Pike’s Place Market.
Two years ago the office of the attorney in Alaska was able to prosecute the previous proprietor of Arctic Treasures gift shop in Anchorage. A few years earlier, four stores were convicted with federal charges.
Fines for violating lawful violations under the Indian Arts and Crafts Act are not uncommon, however the time spent in jail is rare, Tribal Business News published in 2021..
The board of the arts operates a special investigation unit, Schmidt said, with one investigator working out of Juneau and another operating out of Anchorage.
“There’s plenty of opportunity for fraud,” Schmidt said.
Alaska’s state Alaska is also investigating complaints through its consumer protection department which, in the year 2022 brought a civil suit against the proprietors of an Anchorage company, claiming they were guilty of importing Alaska-sourced bones, antlers and other bone products to Philippines and then turning them into knives and other items there.
In the beginning of the tourist season of this year The Department of Law sent an alert letter to 44 tourism companies and advised them to not remove foreign country marks from souvenirs.
“In in the past CPU had received reports about businesses that serve tourists may remove labels indicating the country of origin of their products from their products, which could confuse or misleads consumers into thinking that the product was made from Alaska,” the letter included in its the second paragraph.
Patty Sullivan, an attorney and spokesperson for the department, stated that the letters weren’t designed to target specific businesses and don’t indicate that the state thinks those businesses aren’t doing anything right.
“These are retail stores which we believe are serving the market for tourists. There have been reports that this type of behavior is occurring in shops that cater to customers from the tourism market. We might send a follow-up series of letters to more stores in the near future,” she added.
Adams declared that the issue merits constant attention.
“Many people think that this is a trivial issue however it’s actually vital in the larger picture of Indigenous communities,” Adams said.
“If we want to be supportive of not just the Indigenous people, but also promote the idea of diversity we must protect and secure these precious pieces of identity” he added.
How to purchase smart
Below are some suggestions from Alaska’s state Alaska along with The Indian Arts and Crafts Board If you’re planning to make sure you’re purchasing authentic items:
- Look for stores with excellent reputations, and those associated with tribes or tribal groups and request an official written warranty or confirmation that the item you’re purchasing was created from someone who is an Alaska Native artist.
- If you can, request an invoice that contains all of the details about the maker, their tribe or village, and the place they’re from.
- Check for a certificate tag. The board as well as program Alaska State Council on the Arts’ “Silver Hand” program both offer the option of certifying with an identification tag.
- Look Beyond “Made from Alaska.” Some products may have the “Made from Alaska” logo, but it was made by someone who is not Native. Instead search for explanations and labels to prove that the product was designed by members of a specific tribe.
- Materials, price and design are all indicators. Genuine items will cost higher than mass-produced versions. If you see something claimed to be hand-carved, but is located next to similar pieces, don’t be swayed. What is advertised as soapstone could be in fact made from resinthe genuine stone can be cool. Plastic is warm and stone weighs more.
- If you’re looking to make a complaint, visit the Indian Arts and Crafts Board online or contact 888-278-3253.
The story first appeared in Alaska Beacon and is republished here with permission.
