The dangerous museum: controlling narratives

Noted Dr. Moana Jackson, Maori scholar: “Museums are dangerous places because they control the storytelling.” How do museums learn to tell the truth? Are museums, by virtue of their history, “colonial archives,” notes Dr. Jackson? We have plenty of reasons to think they are.

This article by Puawai Cairns discusses the Te Papa Tongarewa Museum of New Zealand’s efforts to decolonize their archives, including how they were working to overcome their own need to control the story and instead pass editorial control to others. Notes Dr. Jackson: “Dare to imagine where we need to be. Just be brave.”