Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, and Inclusion in Museums

Johnnetta Betsch Cole, Laura L. Lott

• Publisher: American Alliance Of Museums
• Year: 2019
• eBook ISBN: 9781538118641
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Museum Administration
• Index: Business

Diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion in all aspects of museums' structure and programming are top issues in the field today – and in the overall arts/culture sector. Much has been written, from various perspectives, over several decades. Yet, a lack of diversity remains and exclusive practices and inequities persist in all types of museums.

A go-to resource for readers interested in learning about diversity and inclusion work in the field – past, present and future. This edited collection of the most important essays, speeches, and reports on these topics seeks to facilitate a much-needed intergenerational dialogue that builds on lessons from the past, broadens thinking about the many different facets of this complex work, and ignites inspiration for continuing to correct inequities across museums of all types, sizes, and locations.

In this book compiled and edited by Dr. Johnnetta Betch Cole, who has served as both director of the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art and as the president of both historically Black colleges for women in the United States, Spelman College and Bennett College (a distinction she alone holds) and Laura Lott, president and CEO of the American Alliance of Museums, (the first woman to the lead the organization), thought leaders in the museum field present their research, analysis and work to answer some of the most challenge questions facing the museum field. Why do these problems persist? How can a new generation of museum leaders champion change to better represent the communities that museums strive to serve and engage? What can we learn from those who have been observing, experiencing, and writing about these issues?

Table of contents

• Contents
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Part 1: A Call to Action
• Chapter 1: Flies in the Buttermilk
• Chapter 2: Museums, Racism, and the Inclusiveness Chasm
• Chapter 3: Museums, Diversity, and Social Value
• Chapter 4: Women’s Locker Room Talk
• Part 2: Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, and Inclusion Strategies
• Chapter 5: Twin Threats
• Chapter 6: The Leadership Imperative
• Chapter 7: History That Promotes Understanding in a Diverse Society
• Chapter 8: Pipeline Is a Verb
• Chapter 9: Museums and ADA at 25
• Chapter 10: Catalyzing Inclusion
• Chapter 11: It’s Time to Stop and Ask “Why?”
• Part 3: The Necessity and Power of First-Person Voices
• Chapter 12: Much Has Been Taken, but All Is Not Lost
• Chapter 13: No Longer Hiding in Plain Sight
• Chapter 14: The National Museum of the American Indian
• Part 4: Personal Journeys
• Chapter 15: Disability and Innovation
• Chapter 16: Maybe This Time
• Chapter 17: Museum Musings
• Appendix A
• Appendix B
• Appendix C
• Appendix D
• Bibliography
• About the Editors and Contributors