Posts
Diversity
What Kind of Ancestor Will You Be?
As Facing Change Senior Diversity Fellows, I and my associate fellows have been tasked with supporting museums as they address the lack of racial diversity in the governances of their …
A Welcoming Week Celebration on the US-Mexico Border
This fall, AAM partnered with Welcoming America to encourage museums to participate in its annual Welcoming Week, in which organizations around the country welcome new immigrants and …
Table Setting: The work before the work
Often when I talk with folks about DEAI work there is a sense of urgency. They’ll say, “We’ve gotta make this happen now because so and so is really a problem,” or “We need our community …
Belonging: Co-creating welcoming and equitable museums
“Can you describe a time you felt unwelcome or like you didn’t belong in a museum?” This question was posed during a recent conference call for the Facing Change Senior Diversity Fellows. …
2019 Award Winner for Excellence in Practice: David Rios
According to his nominator, David Rios, Director of Public Programs and Curator of Contemporary Art at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan (CMOM), “excels in building experiences and …
With Their Subject Matter in the Crosshairs, What Should Museums Do?
My parents were part of the generation that fought and won World War II. As their children, it was common for us to ask them, “What did you do during the war?” We wanted to be reassured …
Get about It: Change and Resistance
I’d never visited New Orleans before, and my brief but fascinating experience served as a metaphor for this year’s AAM Annual Meeting experience. New Orleans is a city of layers, with old …
Flies in the Buttermilk: Museums, Diversity, and the Will to Change
This essay originally appeared in the July/August 2000 issue of Museum News, a publication of the American Alliance of Museums. Lonnie G. Bunch III later became the founding director of the …
Financial Sustainability Is Everyone’s Responsibility
Prepared Remarks of Laura L. Lott President & CEO of the American Alliance of Museums Opening General Session of the 2019 Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo May 20, 2019 Good morning and …
A Fellowship Helps One Emerging Professional Find Her Footing
Art has been a part of my life since very early on. When I was around four, my mother began working at the Detroit Institute of Arts, and I spent many hours after school and on weekends …
Hiring Tips to Create Value and Inclusion for all Disciplines in Museums
There are qualified and diverse candidates out there who may not be aware that museums are a sustainable career option for them—it’s our job as a field to recruit and retain this virtually …
The Mission-Driven Café: When doing the wrong thing is the right thing to do
Ask most museum directors, restaurant consultants, and other knowledgeable folks and they will tell you: “Hire an outside food-service company to run your café.” Well, that makes perfect …