Museums of social conscience : interpreting a troubled past.

Abstract

The development of museums of social conscience is a significant, yet under appreciated, contribution to the greater museum community. This is a comprehensive study on the origins of these institutions, the impact they have had on the greater museum community, as well as a critical look at their methodology. Research materials primarily consists of personal interviews and correspondence with key institutions such as the International Coalition for Historic Site Museums of Social Conscience, the Lower East Side Tenement Museum, the Matilda Joselyn Gage House, the Museum of African American History of Boston, and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. This thesis offers a current, wide-ranging perspective on these noteworthy organizations – their unique collections, innovative interpretative techniques, funding, and community responses.