“We are losing science,” warns Weiss, who sees this politicization as an existential threat. “When remains are buried or destroyed, when museums censor their exhibits, there is nothing left to study. Unlike other disciplines, once anthropological data is lost, it cannot be recreated.”
Elizabeth Weiss nevertheless remains attached to the idea of an anthropology anchored in science and the exploration of the past. But her testimony, opposing scientific rigor to identity pretensions, suggests an uncertain future for a discipline in search of meaning.