Redefining neutrality in museums with Fadima Aroua

Over the coming year, invited speakers will support the participants of Echoes in developing their own critical and creative perspectives on museum practices. They will help the collective in selecting the ‘missing’ narratives that they wish to exhibit in the House of European History. 

Fadima works as a policy advisor on diversity and inclusion for the University of Antwerp and is a youth worker for Girls in the City, a project that aims at empowering girls and non-binary youth between 12 and 18 years in Antwerp. The objectives of her workshop were as follows: 

• Raise awareness of the concepts of neutrality and inclusion in the context of a historical museum 
• Develop a critical and personal view of the choices museum’s make in presenting history 
• Interactive exploration of the permanent exhibition

How does our positionality, our frame of reference and our privilege or vulnerability affect our work? The participants of the workshop addressed this question by exploring a social identity wheel as portrayed below. Everyone reflected 5 minutes on the following questions: 

• Are there identity traits you are most aware of? 
• Are there identity traits you are least aware of? 
• Are there identity characteristics that determine how you see yourself? 
• Are there identity characteristics that determine how others see you?

The resulting group conversation allowed participants to understand how some aspects can make us privileged whilst other can make us more vulnerable. At the same time, our identities are ever evolving and interact with each other in a world where there are different social positions and different forms of discrimination. 

Being transparent about one’s positionality, frame of reference and privileges or vulnerabilities allows us to acknowledge other perspectives and include other voices. 

Fadima and the collective then continued to explore the meaning of neutrality in museums. On the one hand, people see museums as organisations with a historical legacy that preserve and educate based on scientific and historical standards. They enjoy public trust and have authority, they wish to be inclusive and accessible and there is an overall desire in these organisations to avoid conflict. 

At the same time, curatorial choices are at the basis of what is and what is not on display in a museum. These choices also influence the interpretation and framing of topics and objects. Museum professionals make these decisions in a cultural and political context and these choices are reflections of societal values. Other aspects to take into consideration when thinking about neutrality in museums are the different ways in which museums are funded as well as the colonial legacy of many museums. 

In this context, two approaches to diversity are possible. One is to say “I don’t see colour! Everyone is equal! A standard solution is sufficient.” Another is to acknowledge the following: “I see colour. People are different and have different needs. We will need multiple solutions.” 

With the first approach, Fadima stressed that being treated equally is not problematic in and of itself but that it is important to continuously ask oneself in relation to whom or what one is continuously referred to when stressing the importance of equality.