Abstract
Museum and public history veterans will present a range of community-centered “belonging and displacement” stories and case studies presented in museums, community and historic sites, and digital platforms throughout the United States. We will open a conversation based upon the notion that belonging is complex and that striving for belonging takes inclusion to another level. If we are truly accountable to our “publics,” how do we co-create socially just and ethically responsible public spaces where marginalized communities feel that they genuinely belong? This work raises many ethical, practical and moral issues and methodological tools that challenge our ideas about power, invisibility, equity and social change. Case studies will include communities in El Paso and Austin, Texas, Chicago, Illinois and Durham, North Carolina. Yolanda Leyva raises questions about the role of museums in the fight against gentrification in the Duranguito community and the establishment of a child detention center in El Paso that led to a new “Uncaged Hearts” exhibition. Barbara Lau reflects on the challenge of creating a historic site in Durham that embraces the complexity of identities of African American, same-gender loving, human rights activist Pauli Murray. Suzanne Seriff discusses her creation of a digital storytelling platform, exhibitionary space, and network of community organizations throughout Central Texas whose clients—incarcerated and chronically homeless– struggle with the trans-generational effects of trauma, racism, and state violence. Jennifer Scott considers how pubic history informs a museum’s role as neighborhood advocate in communities on Chicago’s West Side which are experiencing neighborhood disinvestment and displacement.*
Presenters
Jennifer ScottFaculty, The New School For Public Engagement, The New School, United States Barbara Lau
Executive Director, Pauli Murray Center for History and Social Justice/ Duke University Suzanne Serif
Director, Arts and Social Justice Internship Program, Schusterman Center for Jewish Studies/University of Texas at Austin Yolanda Leyva
Associate Professor of History, The University of Texas at El Paso
Details
Presentation Type
Theme
KEYWORDS
Belonging, Inclusion, Displacement, Community Engagement, Equity, Social Justice
