Personally speaking, I believe it is the responsibility of archaeologists to confront as well as deconstruct the claims of pseudo-archaeologists/archaeology. The general public is extremely susceptible to such narratives since they tend to not be completely aware of archaeology in general. Before any formal education in archaeology, I myself fell under the influence of pseudo-archaeological claims. Some of these claims were that slaves built the Great Pyramids of Giza and that the Piltdown man was a solid piece of pre-human history. The influence of such beliefs were due to lack of knowledge and research, something one does not always think to do when being presented information by some reputable sources. 

As we also learned in class, many other people are under similar influences. As Dr. Watrall recounted a story of an excavation his dad was on in North America, he would often get the question from people passing by, “Find any Vikings yet?” With the obvious archaeological support that no, the Viking community did not make it as far South as the United States, many people believe otherwise because of pseudo-archaeological productions. With the existence of faked artifacts, people outside the archaeological community are inclined to believe these productions. While archaeologists are constantly finding artifacts and sites that can easily deconstruct pseudo-archaeological narratives, findings should be released to the general public in order to combat the false belief these pseudo claims instill in people. When people, in masses, begin to fall under the spell of something completely false, it becomes a threat to the truth. While pseudo-archaeologists are off releasing fantastical ideas into people’s heads, it begins to insult and regress human intellect. For example, falling under the assumption that Vikings or aliens built the mounds (that are archaeologically proven to have been built by Native American communities) is a dangerous belief. Since this narrative is constructed by the theme of ethnocentrism, bringing underlying racist ideals back into action threaten the moving forward everyone has been so desperately fighting for. 

All in all, I believe that it is our job as archaeologists and archaeology students to counteract such bogus claims when we are faced with them. Combatting falsified beliefs is the first step in turning the public’s attention to the truth. Understanding this truth both as archaeologists, students and the public is an imperative first step in understanding our history/origins as humans all around. When we fall silent on incorrect claims, we fall victim to any hope of moving forward as an archaeological community. Our job is to understand humans through material remains and educate the public on any findings, so why should one stop at the outrageous claim of a pseudo-archaeologist?