External Resources
Museum decolonization efforts have been championed by dedicated community activists, artists, museum practitioners, and scholars for decades. Some of their work is highlighted below.
Collectives, Organizations, Projects
African Digital Heritage is a Kenya based non-profit organisation founded to encourage a more critical, holistic and knowledge-based approach to the design and implementation of digital solutions within African cultural heritage. Partner institutions in the 2021 Museum Futures Africa Project include: National Museums of Kenya, Musée National (Guinea), IFAN Diop Museum (Senegal), YSM Art Museum (Nigeria), Ugandan National Museum, Steve Biko Museum (South Africa)
Decolonize this Place (DTP) is an action-oriented movement and decolonial formation in New York City. Facilitated by MTL+, DTP consists of over 30 collaborators, consisting of grassroots groups and art collectives that seek to resist, unsettle, and reclaim the city. The organizing and action bring together many strands of analysis and traditions of resistance: Indigenous insurgence, Black liberation, free Palestine, free Puerto Rico, the struggles of workers and debtors, de-gentrification, migrant justice, dismantling patriarchy, and more
Museum Futures Africa is a Pan-African project hosted through the German multi-sited institution, Goethe Institut. It was established to support the conceptual development of museums throughout the African continent.
The Open Restitution Project is an Africa-led project seeking to open up access to information on restitution of African material culture and human ancestors, to empower all stakeholders involved to make knowledge-based decisions.
Museum Detox is a network for people of colour who work in museums, galleries, libraries, archives, and the heritage sector. Museum Detox champions fair representation and the inclusion of cultural, intellectual, and creative contributions from POCs. We challenge and work to deconstruct systems of inequality that exist to enable a sector where the workforce and audience is reflective of the UK’s 21st century population.
The phrase “Museums Are Not Neutral” is both a hashtag and the rallying words of a movement. Across America and overseas, Museums are Not Neutral is changing the way we think about museums, with tactics that build community and question the traditional role of the museum and museum educators.