Lifelong Anti-Oppression Learning for Museum Professionals

ABSTRACT

Formal museology education makes up a very small, if any, proportion of a museum professional's working life. It is not possible for that limited an experience to fully equip someone for a life of anti-oppression work. More than formal pedagogy, museums need lifelong anti-oppression learners in the field. This article presents two frameworks from the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience (ICSC) to help readers become better lifelong learners. It matches these theoretical frameworks with interviews from ICSC members around the world about their experience as lifelong learners.

KEYWORDS:

• Anti-oppression
• lifelong learning
• metacognition
• questions
• listening
• international

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Notes

1 Because the work of the Coalition draws from so many fields, the authors and interviewers will refer to “heritage” and “museum” professionals interchangeably. This is meant to be inclusive and not emphasize boundaries that professionals regularly collaborate across, take jobs on either side of, and are not often visible to the communities we serve.

2 “What is Anti-Oppression?”

3 “Terminologies of Oppression.”

4 For a complete list of members and information on membership, visit https://www.sitesofconscience.org/en/members/members-list/.

5 Paulo Freire was a writer and education theorist most famous for his work Pedagogy of the Oppressed.

6 The Nap Ministry was founded by Tricia Hershey and is a collection of social and print media that focuses on the idea that “rest is resistance.”

7 For more on building this kind of partnership (which has insight for personal relationships as well) see, Semmel, Partnership Power.

8 For more information see, University of Illinois at Chicago, “William Ayers” and University of Illinois at Chicago, “Barbara Ransby.”

9 For more information see National Park Service, “Grace Lee Boggs.”

10 Praxis is the practice of a skill or knowledge set. It is theory in action.

11 The “Four Truths” were developed by South African jurist Albie Sachs to help understand his experiences working with the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The understanding of them has since changed as it is used by museums and historic sites to understand their work. An example of the original can be found in Sachs’ 2005 speech at the National Archives, London. Text can be found under Albie Sachs, “Archives, Truth and Reconciliation.”

12 To read more about another approach to learning through creativity see: Norris and Tisdale, Creativity in Museum Practice.

13 National Research Council, How People Learn, 12.

14 Fry and Seegmiller, “The Foundation of Injustice.”

15 For a great study of how unexamined processes impact our thinking and how they change, see McRaney, How Minds Change. Chapter 5 is particularly insightful.

16 Mason, Uncivil Agreement, 1–18. Fry and Seegmiller, “The Foundation of Injustice,” 6–13.

17 For more on learning by being still and aware see Lederach, The Moral Imagination, Chapter 10.

18 For more on questions see examples from ICSC’s Front Page Dialogue series at https://www.sitesofconscience.org/en/resources/frontpagedialogues/.

19 Forward Through Ferguson, “A Path to Racial Equity Worksheet.”

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Braden Paynter

Braden Paynter As the Director for Methodology and Practice at the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience, Braden helps good ideas move around the world and supports sites with the knowledge, skills and relationships they need to thrive. He leads the Methodology and Practice team in supporting members’ development of programming, exhibitions, and engagement strategies that connect with their communities’ most pressing challenges. Braden has trained hundreds of organizations in dialogue, community engagement, planning, and operating at the intersection of history and justice.

Linda Norris

Linda Norris Working as Senior Specialist in Methodology and Practice, Linda builds the capacity of organizations around the globe to effectively engage with communities and strengthen creative capacity. She is the co-author of Creativity in Museum Practice. Recent projects have included leading the revitalization of Maison des Esclaves, Africa’s first World Heritage Site, and workshops for organizations in locations ranging from the Czech Republic to the Adirondacks. Linda is also an adjunct instructor in the Johns Hopkins University Museum Studies Program.