ICOM UK is appalled by the recent racist violence across the UK. This hateful and shameful targeting of Muslims, people of colour, immigrants, asylum seekers, refugees, fuelled by misinformation and hatred, has no place in our society. The Board of ICOM UK and our members stand with our communities against racism and violence.
Cultural institutions were amongst the places affected by the recent riots in the UK: on Saturday 3 August 2024 Spellow Hub library in Liverpool was targeted by rioters and suffered severe fire damage. The writer Heinrich Heine said: ‘Where they burn books, they will ultimately burn people too.’ These terror acts and book burning are not freedom of speech, nor are they protest. They are fascism and racism. How do we, as a society, recover from this situation? Once law and order are restored it will be time to re-establish – and, in some cases, inspire – positive relationships within communities.
ICOM was born in 1946, in the aftermath of World War II when calls for unity gave birth to many international organisations with the aim of building a lasting peace amongst nations. The conflict was over, but reconciliation was still a long way ahead. The founding Members of ICOM understood that museums and culture have a pivotal role to play in building a common ground for mutual understanding and dialogue. These ideals remain core values ICOM defends to this day.
ICOM UK chose ‘Common Ground’ as the theme of our 2024 Conference only four months ago. The conference was held in Belfast, a city which has seen more than its fair share of conflict – and healing. Much of this healing has been facilitated by museums and other cultural institutions. The role of the museum in this process is not to establish an agreed narrative nor provide solutions, but to offer opportunities for dialogue. Reflection, remembering and sharing different perspectives result in building mutual respect and understanding.
Museums are places of remembering. But remembering is not easy if the narrative is contested. At this year’s conference we heard how physical and mental borders can be erected by groups through storytelling and owning the narrative, eventually often resulting in conflict. Sometimes, old wounds can only heal if it can be accepted that narratives are contested.
Museums create shared spaces for conversations. These spaces need to feel safe for all staff and their entire community. Museums are not neutral, and modern museums have the absolute intention to play an active role in dialogue and reconciliation in communities; there are many great examples, including the International Slavery Museum, the Museum of Homelessness, the People’s History Museum and the Migration Museum. Museums no longer simply display information, but consider communication needs, what is and what is not appropriate to display in various cultural contexts, and work proactively with their communities.
Museums, by addressing contemporary societal issues, past and current injustices as well as difficult histories, have an important role to play in supporting peace and human rights. They can do so by being safe spaces for dialogue among and between diverse communities, and by fostering creative problem-solving.
Museums cannot stop the current disinformation, but we can foster knowledge and understanding, and build stronger communities and resilience to counteract racism and violence in the future.
