“Native American Museum Practices and the Ongoing Project of Truth Telling and Reclamation”: Wednesday, November 12, 4:00 PM
As a result of Indigenous activism and new museum theory and practice, the relationship between Native Americans and mainstream museums has changed significantly over the last several decades. These changes include the sharing of curatorial authority, collaborative partnerships with mainstream institutions, and efforts to decolonize and Indigenize museums. While the scholarly literature has emphasized the positive new directions these collaborative projects represent, there is still considerable work to be done to address the power imbalances that remain. My talk will consider the ongoing project of decolonizing and Indigenizing museums, lessons learned, and the challenges of reclaiming Indigenous ancestors and cultural belongings in colonial institutions. I will also explore the importance of unsettling colonial representations and the need to center Native voice and perspective in interpretation in museums and memorials.
“Survivance Stories and the Visual Archive: Writing a Photographic History of the Ho-Chunk Nation, 1879-1960”: Thursday, November 13, 4:00 PM
This presentation examines the process of writing a visual history of the Ho-Chunk Nation. Drawing upon Stó:lō scholar Jo-Ann Archibald’s Indigenous storywork methodology, it explores family history, tourism, settler colonialism, and Ho-Chunk survivance through an examination of two important photographic collections: the Charles Van Schaick Collection and the Henry Hamilton (H.H.) Bennett Collection. These photographs serve as storywork, revealing connections to community, history, knowledge, culture, kinship, and responsibilities. Engaging with these images highlight storytelling as a vital method to “re-right and rewrite” history, reclaim family and place, and assert Ho-Chunk sovereignty and survivance.
Amy Lonetree is an enrolled citizen of the Ho-Chunk Nation and a Professor of History at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She received her Ph.D. in Ethnic Studies from the University of California, Berkeley, and her research focuses on Native American history, Indigenous photography, visual studies, public history, and museum studies. Her publications include Decolonizing Museums: Representing Native America in National and Tribal Museums; a co-edited book, The National Museum of the American Indian: Critical Conversations; and a co-authored volume, People of the Big Voice: Photographs of Ho-Chunk Families by Charles Van Schaick, 1879-1942. She is currently working on a book focusing on a visual history of the Ho-Chunk Nation that explores family history, tourism, settler colonialism, and Ho-Chunk survivance. She is also pursuing research on the history of Indigenous child removal in the United States.
