Museums and Social Justice
Tags: Museum Studies, Museology, Museum Education, Museums, Art

CULTURE AND MUSEUMS

Dr. S. Radhakrishnan writes in his Foreword note for Dr. S. Abid Husain’s book ‘The National Culture of India’, “India’s cultural history of several thousand years shows that the subtle but strong thread of unity which runs through the infinite multiplicity of her life, was not woven by stress or pressure of power groups but the vision of sheers, the vigil of saints, the speculation of philosophers, and the imagination of poets and artists and that these are the only means which can be used to make this national unity wider, stronger and more lasting.” It may appear to us that though the character of government should be a secular one, while the very root of culture is deeply rooted in philosophy and spiritual values.

It is important for museums and cultural institutes to understand the demographic, social, economic, political and cultural background of the Nation to which they belong. The Indian tradition has always been inclusive in nature, providing space to other cultures to assimilate or maintain their distinct nature or individuality in the cultural landscape of the country. Keeping this cultural value in mind, today museums are expected to reformulate its set of objectives and restructure them according to needs of the larger society. Prof. S. Abid Husain writes in his book ‘The National Culture of India’, “Culture is a sense of ultimate values possessed by a particular society as expressed in its collective institutions, by its individual members in their dispositions, feelings, attitudes and manners as well as in significant forms which they give to material objects.” While agreeing to the view of Prof. Husain about the concept of ‘Culture’, I would also like to quote here Dr. A.K. Coomaraswamy’s interpretation of culture which has all essential elements or ingredients of universality, “Culture is consciousness; primarily, an unprejudiced comprehension of one’s own civilization. This is only possible when we have some idea of its relation to other cultures — likeness and differences.”

The above definitions and interpretations of ‘Culture’ and ‘Cultural Values’ indicate strongly the identity of nation, different communities and their relations to cultural plurality. This is reflected in the collective legacy which remained dominant in the entire evolutionary process and is evident in three distinct forms:

• Tangible: in the form of a built heritage.

• Intangible: in the form of traditions, customs and manners, folklore etc.

• Expressive: language, stories, music etc.

Here, we see our identity in the sense of cultural continuity which helps maintain a balance between changing metaphors and static values. Museums around the world are guardians of the cultural and artistic achievements of mankind. By providing people with the opportunity to experience cultural objects and art, museums foster not only an appreciation of aesthetic beauty and human inventiveness, but also promote mutual understanding of histories and culture among the diverse peoples of the world.

MUSEUM — ITS CHARACTER, DUTY AND PURPOSE

Before we proceed further it is important for all of us to understand the definition of ‘Museum’ and also its character, duty and purpose. The International Council of Museums (ICOM) provides us a most exhaustive definition on the following lines: “A Museum is a non-profit, permanent institution in the service of society and its development open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity and its environment for the purposes of education, study and enjoyment.” The definition reflects three aspects of Museum:

• The first is the character of a museum, that it shall be a non-profit, permanent institution and open to the public.

• The second part emphasizes the duty, that is, in the service of society and its development.

• The third and final part deals with the purpose, that is, education, study and enjoyment.

It is now distinctly clear from this definition that the very existence of a museum is for the society and its development. Then the question comes to our mind, how do we reach out to all sections of society and give them their legitimate rights to their own cultural heritage? And how do we museum Curators do justice to museum collections and other facilities? To address these questions we have to do some kind of general study of museum collections which is always considered as one of the core activities of a museum. Looking at different catalogues of different museums, it seems that museums across the country could not adopt a single standard acceptable acquisition policy, neither could do justice to different religions, languages and artistic expressions of diverse communities. This thus raises a question of inequality on the core objectives and the institutional values.

The eminent Economist cum Social theorist Prof. Amartya Sen writes in the preface of his book ‘The Idea of Justice’, “This is evident in our day-to-day life, with inequalities of subjugations from which we may suffer and which we have good reason to resent, but it also applies to more widespread diagnoses of injustice in the wider world in which we live.” It is, therefore, necessary for a museum or any cultural institute (or Public institutes) to have a clear cut policy of inclusion for everyone without prejudice. Such a policy helps museums to come closer to people from different backgrounds.

MUSEUMS AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

Though the concept of ‘Public Museum’ originated in Europe in 16–17th century CE with a conservative outlook to study and preserve cultural heritage of mankind, gradually with the passage of time it turned out to be a mass movement for accessibility to Nations, art and culture. The establishment of the British Museum, London, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford and the Louvre in France had encouraged those with a progressive outlook to study the repository of antiquities of the ancient world as collective cultural property of mankind. Thereafter a number of public museums of varied nature were established in different countries but these museums did not receive the desired attention from the people in general and local communities in particular due to their elitist and scholarly approaches. However, a radical change in approaches of museums was noticed towards the end of the 20th century in Europe and America and some parts of South — East Asia. ICOM (International Council of Museums) played a vital role in developing the concept of Universal Museum for world community. The main objective was to re-unite all like minded countries on a single platform and also to encourage them to develop a universal approach towards the preservation of a common cultural heritage to be shared with the world irrespective of physical and economic barriers. Unfortunately, museums in India completely lagged behind the international movement due to inadequate practical experience and well-meaning vision. In India the concept of Museum during this period remained more or less at the discovery, exploration and excavation level.

It has been observed that most of our traditional cultural museums and institutions were created in different times for different audiences than the ones they now have to serve. In the past, exploration, mapping, collecting and preserving cultural goods were of major importance, while today museums are required to connect with society and represent the people they serve. It is now a fact that our museums are an integral part of society and their sustainability depends on the patronage of members of society. The Museum is a cultural as well as social space. It is also a meeting space for individuals and communities to engage in dialogue and exchange of ideas. Being a platform for free experience, it is imperative that museums be inclusive. Museum education is therefore important for social inclusion and community engagement.

Realising the need of contemporary society, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS), Mumbai, has introduced a number of creative and innovative education and conservation programs to reach out to all strata of society. Believing in the principle of universalism and cultural equality, we at the Museum acknowledge the need to disseminate knowledge, expertise and resources through professional and virtual networks in addition to the circulation of material objects. The Museum is recognising the responsibility to share cultural artifacts with a community which has an acknowledged interest in a collection, even if it is not in their care.

There are hundreds and thousands of theories of Social Justice but the most important one is the theory of justice by the leading political expert, John Rawls. He puts his argument in the following ‘Principles of justice’ (Political Liberalism, 1993, p.291):

i) Each person has an equal right to fully adequate scheme of equal basic liberties which is compatible with a similar scheme of liberties for all.

ii) Social and economic inequalities are to satisfy two conditions. First, they must be attached to offices and positions open to all under conditions of fair equality of opportunity; and second, they must be to the greatest benefit of the least advantaged members of society.

It is important to note that Rawls emphasized more on human liberties, fair equality of opportunity and greatest benefit of the underprivileged section of society. But to us social justice means extending equal access and all available facilities to everyone (able, and differently abled) irrespective of religion, cast, language, region, economic and social status. The CSMVS has been experimenting for quite some time with the principles of social justice in different disciplines / areas of Museology with the sole objective that tomorrow Museum becomes a centre of informal education, guided by the needs and expectations of communities which value as ‘Heritage’ not only objects or collections, but first and foremost individuals and the richness they embody: stories, ideas, emotions, values, desires, fears and hopes. The following articles in this Newsletter highlight our approaches towards the principles of social justice and their applicability in Museum education and cultural programs.