Museum Studies Commons^™

Decolonize This Place: The Activist Potential Of Anthropology Museums, Katharine Anne Nelson

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Museums are under increasing pressure to become more activist. The literature revealed that museum activism can benefit society, though a gap appeared pertaining to anthropology museums. Historically, anthropology museums were tied to colonialism and even racism, and thus need to evolve to become more socially responsible. Through a qualitative case study of four anthropology museums in the United States – the Museum of Us, the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography, the Penn Museum and the Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology – this study examined how anthropology museums can change and engage with activism. A series of recommendations were …