DANIELLE SHELTON, MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY
Proposal Type
Roundtable
Seeking
- Seeking General Feedback and Interest
Related Topics
- Memory
- Place
- Social Justice
Abstract
This panel will explore how public history can tell the stories that have been rendered invisible due to displacement. We will explore this through case studies situated in Tennessee: at Red Clay State Historic Park, Oak Ridge, Gatlinburg, and Nashville. We will examine how various forces of displacement–including economic liberalization and modernization–shape the practice of public history. And we will imagine new strategies for developing a public history that is ethically responsible, inclusive, and an advocate for social justice.
Description
For this panel our goals are to:
- Develop strategies for making visible the untold stories of displaced communities.
- Consider the ethical responsibilities of public historians working in contexts of economic, racial, and other forms of inequality.
- Identify the ways in which forces of economic liberalization and modernization have transformed “place” and, in turn, how we practice public history.
- Discuss the best practices for including the voices and stories of marginalized communities and individuals.
What kinds of “general feedback” are we looking for?
In terms of feedback, we are hoping to broadly understand how the main themes (place, displacement, and social justice) in this panel speak to public history practices today. This includes the following questions:
- To what extent are public historians engaging in social justice activism as an extension of their practice?
- How do we characterize the various relationships between public historians and commercial enterprise, e.g. real estate developers, private businesses, etc.
- And what are the various ways in which neoliberal governments (state and federal) shape and influence displacement of vulnerable communities?
If you have a direct offer of assistance, sensitive criticism, or wish to pass along someone’s contact information confidentially, please get in contact directly: Danielle Shelton, [email protected]
All feedback and offers of assistance should be submitted by July 1, 2019. If you have general ideas or feedback to share, please feel free to use the comments feature below.
Hi Danielle, I’m not sure if you saw this other NCPH proposal that is also taking on similar themes of gentrification and displacement of marginalized communities. Maybe you should reach out to Ari Green, if it applies:
“The New Gentrification: A Thin Line Between Economic Development and Urban Displacement of Black People”
ARI GREEN, CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, SACRAMENTO
https://ncph.org/phc/2020-annual-meeting-topic-proposals/the-new-gentrification-a-thin-line-between-economic-development-and-urban-displacement-of-black-people/
Thanks for the suggestion, Jennifer.
Danielle – great idea but I think your title is misleading – I was expecting a panel on material culture but this is not what seems to be suggested here. The case studies you mention sound great. I think your abstract needs to be more specific and less generic/uncertain and perhaps just focus on one of your questions:
To what extent are public historians engaging in social justice activism as an extension of their practice?
Good luck!
Thanks for the suggestions, Tanya.