Decolonizing the Prisons of Cultural Identity: Denominational Archives and Indigenous “Manifestations of Culture”

Abstract

The records of Christian missions to Indigenous peoples have always been assumed to belong to the missionaries and their sponsoring denominations, not to the Indigenous communities where the missionaries worked, and are therefore managed by denominational archivists. This practice has been consistent with Western archival theory and copyright law. In recent years, however, museums have been increasingly willing to repatriate the Indigenous cultural objects they possess to the communities that created them. But it is the objects created by Indigenous persons and communities that are repatriated: records created by settlers about Indigenous persons and communities have remained with settler cultural institutions. The Church's continuing control of so many of the historical records relating to Indigenous nations and individuals raises serious questions about justice, reconciliation, and mutual respect in the relations between Indigenous and settler peoples. Attention has been drawn to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which affirms the right of Indigenous peoples to control all “manifestations of culture.” Where Christian agents of settler churches and organizations have reported on or photographed Indigenous persons—frequently in situations of power imbalance where the Indigenous persons have not given their full, free, and informed consent—who should control these “manifestations of culture”? Using the case study of a request received by an Anglican archives from an Indigenous community to acquire a series of photographs of Indigenous community members and ceremonies taken by missionaries, this article will explore how Western archival theory and codes of ethics may actually get in the way of making the most ethical decisions. It contends that professionals would do well to consider pushing beyond its current theoretical and ethical frameworks to incorporate more intersubjective approaches in order to respect Indigenous rights and move reconciliation forward.