Tuesday June 2nd 2020 was a day of solidarity around the world.
However we at Archaeologists Engage are aware that we must not show allyship on just one day, there must be a commitment in the international heritage sector, which facilitates access to the interpretation of history to do more, ongoing.
Yesterday we posted a statement about what we believed we could do to be better in our field of archaeology and cultural heritage. We wanted to share this on a more permanent platform with you all, as something of a mission statement.
As ARCHAEOLOGISTS and cultural heritage professionals we have a particular opportunity to bring about change in the narrative. We work internationally, across the world, cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary. We can help stop discrimination.
What can we do?
- We can ensure diversity in our research institutions.
- We can ensure diverse excavation teams.
- We can be inclusive of community groups and indigenous communities when planning projects.
- We can be inclusive of community groups and indigenous communities when planning projects.
- We can amplify the voices of local archaeologists.
- We can counter misinformation.
- We can ENGAGE more with our communities.
- We can ENGAGE more with our communities.
- We can acknowledge the politicisation of our work.
- We can become involved in education programmes.
- We can highlight and work with charities to provide access to heritage and about heritage to minority or disadvantaged communities.
- We can highlight misinterpretation in past work.
- We can call out problems.
- We can tell the stories that need telling.
- We can empower individuals.
- We can empower communities.
As educators, researchers, institutions, cultural centres, community activists, volunteers, professionals…..
- We can do more
- We can make discrimination out of date
#makediscriminationoutofdate
Thank you for reading and engaging!
Dr Tathagata Neogi, Dr Belinda Tibbetts, Linn Marie Krogsrud, Emily Wapshott