Thirteenth International Conference on The Inclusive Museum

Abstract

What happens when we shift the focus of collecting, preserving, and disseminating LGBTQ+ history from major metropolitan centers, such as San Francisco, Berlin, Paris, and New York, to smaller cities? How might our traditional preoccupation with collecting LGBTQ+ histories in large urban spaces actually serve to re-marginalize at-risk populations and flatten the historical interpretation of urban landscapes? How can real inclusion (beyond the idea of diversity) and community partnership transform museum practice, mission, and audience? As lead scholar of LGBTQ+ Worcester For The Record, an archive-building, oral history, and exhibit project affiliated with the Worcester Historical Museum in the second largest city in Massachusetts, USA, I will respond to these questions by sharing our project goals, collecting and community engagement strategies, and our successes and ongoing struggles. Because the collection and exhibition of queer history is so often overlooked in our professional spaces, exhibitions of this sort challenge understandings of the publics we engage and the voices that must shape our work. Likewise, these projects require alternative grassroots methodologies to both collect and interpret marginalized histories and to integrate community-led initiatives into the work of institutions without replicating existing exclusionary power structures within our organizations. This sort of project can function as a site of serious social justice work that encourages political consciousness and engagement with new museum stakeholders in non-majority communities. As the threat to LGBTQ+ rights and safety is on the rise in many spaces across the globe, collecting and exhibiting queer history is more important than ever.