Why We Need To Decolonize The Brooklyn Museum | NowThis

They want the art, not the people'—a coalition of 20 community groups in New York are calling for a 'Decolonization Commission' of the Brooklyn Museum after the controversial hiring of a white woman as the curator of African art. Here's how that could work.

Recently, the Brooklyn Museum controversially hired a white woman, Kristen Windmuller-Luna, as the curator of their African art collection, which led many to point out the diversity problem within the space’s staff.

“In an open letter, we address the hire as just a symptom of a larger structural problem and propose a Decolonization Commission as an opportunity to the curatorial crisis,” explained activist and educator Marz Saffore explained. “The aim of the letter was to redress the ongoing legacies of oppression in which the museum is complicit.”

She went on to state, “To be clear —this call to action was never an attack or campaign against the newly appointed white curator of African art, Kristen Windmuller-Luna. She may very well be a highly qualified candidate, but her hiring highlights several systemic issues latent in the art world itself.

Saffore and the groups who support the Decolonization Commission are wondering how the museum actually supports the community around it if its staff is predominantly white and it’s actively taking over the area.

So, will the museum listen to the groups who are begging for change? Or will they continue to operate in the neighborhood as usual and ignore the loud call for inclusion?

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[cube]

Great to see QTPOC representation in this video!

[minchul]

Would you consider the hiring of a black curator for a European art collection to be “controversial” too?

[Joseph]

She tells you that only 4% of people in that position are black in the US. But doesn’t say only 13% of the people in the us are black. You have to put it all into perspective.

[alanbarnes]

A black woman using Black Panther as an example never I never saw that one coming.

[ersatzinstitute]

"Museums are complicit in gentrification"... So museums make neighborhoods nicer and that's a bad thing? What should we do, stop trying to build anything nice in poorer areas?

[hawrnball]

Celebrating a fictional country. That’s rich.

[kennethjansson]

so, suddenly skin colour is important...

[jackbarnett]

All these artifacts would be much more appreciated in a free open democratic city like new york than a tiny museum in a dangerous nation in Africa where hardly anyone would see them

[TyTito]

Last year they return 1305 of Costa Rica pieces they haved.

[eastafricakingdom]

Who cares as long as she's qualified for the job just saying

[danquilty]

Killmomgrr asked her to explain the artifacts to her, and somehow she still manages to whitesplain. Shame on her

[supersovak]

SMH...the comments on this are exactly why the struggle for a non-settler/colonial base education is real.

[JacquelineTrudel]

I'm disappointed in humanity when reading the comment section...

[JohnHoworth]

This video is not very focused. It seems to cover many issues which become entangled with each other.
The use of a quote from a superhero film is very superficial and doesn't really cover the complexity of museums holding and displaying artefacts from around the world. It's certainly an important issue to find out where objects came from and how they were acquired, but you can't just call for them to be repatriated without any of this knowledge.
It is true that there are very questionable objects being held by museums throughout the world, it is also an issue which is being looked into by these institutions.
The demonstration against a white woman getting the job for head of African art is an odd one as we were not party to the selection process or even who the candidates were. The video then seems to back pedal slightly, conceding that she might be the best for the job. The problem of racial (and any other type of) equality in hiring processes is an ongoing issue in all forms of employment.
Then there's the gentrification issue, which is also important but is very different to the first two. Again, another important point, one that sounds like a very important issue but there's no more information about what is happening around Brooklyn Museum.
Finally the building is situated on indigenous ground...but aren't all buildings in the US technically sitting on indigenous ground? What is the course of action for this? Would Decolonize be happy with an information board?

[JW-YT]

No reparations, this is the most idiotic campaign i've ever heard of.

[Organic.Mechanic]

We also need a movement for decolonisation of the British museums.

[theweebtrash]

You make some good points and I hear your side but you lost me when you’re trying to quote Kilmonger and use Wakanda in your statement.

[trishgmail]

I personally don't like the term decolonize because it has become a shroud. Most organizations need to stop colonizing before they can even talk about decolonization.

[lesliemaggart]

First of all, what is QTPOC and sjws? I dont know those terms. Secondly, I may have taken this the wrong way, but what I got out of this is that Museums are against certain types of people to enter into the building. I don't think that makes since what this lady is actually talking about, but what is this lady actually talking about besides decolonizing museums?

[LAWLESSKING]

they missed the part in the scene where he kills everyone...