National Antiquities Take-Back Day
Today is National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day. Each year the Drug Enforcement Administration coordinates with federal, state, county, and local police and police to collect millions of pounds of unused medications stored in household medicine cabinets, reducing the availability of addictive drugs.
Police departments and prosecutors’ offices collect the drugs from individuals without asking questions, removing the fear of any potential law enforcement consequence.
In the same way, a National Antiquities Take-Back Day would allow collectors and their family members to return ancient statues, pots, coins, and other archaeological objects known to have been acquired illicitly or believed to have suspicious histories.
Such an event could be sponsored by Homeland Security’s Cultural Property, Art, and Antiquities Program and the FBI Art Crime Team, who would supervise collecting the objects without no questions asked and who would repatriate the artifacts to their lawful owners.
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