CILIP London: Decolonising Collections: questions, problems and solutions?

Wednesday 8 December 2020, 18:30 - 19:30

Those working on or with colonial archives and collections face a number of challenges arising from the historical contexts of these materials: where they came from, how they were brought together (or separated), and who has been their custodian. In these circumstances, it is important that contemporary professionals do not repeat or entrench the mistakes of the past. Nowadays, there are seemingly simple solutions to some of the problems that we come across.

Firstly, we must share the archives we use or care for with the people to whom they relate, allowing them to access what was lost or in most cases taken from them.Secondly, we have a responsibility to re-connect archives that have been dispersed and disrupted by colonialism. Finally, we have to write responsibly: whether that's in our books and research papers or our catalogues.

However, in 'solving' the problems raised by colonial archives and collections, are we creating new problems for ourselves and for future generations? Can they actually be decolonised?

Dr Melissa Bennett is a historian of race and empire. Her PhD 'Picturing the West India Regiments: Race, Empire and Photography' aimed to unify and search for meaning in the disparate photographic archive of Britain's first 'official' Black military regiment. She now works part-time on a research project for the National Trust that aims to find an approach to 'activate' their long neglected and vast photography collection, and part-time delivering community engagement projects at the GLA including the Mayors Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm.

Tickets are £10 for non members, £5 for members and £3 for students.

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