Multivocality and Its Implications for the Representation of Heritage: A Case Study of the Slavery Heritage in Mikindani, Tanzania

Abstract

This article, by using evidence from the old town of Mikindani in Tanzania, explores multivocality in the memorialization of the slavery heritage in Mikindani. It also looks at how multivocality perpetuates dissonance and shapes cultural negotiations and the people’s strategies for coping with violent memories. It employed the notion of heritage dissonance and integrated heritage discourse and a qualitative case-study design. Thirty-three respondents were interviewed and three focus group discussion sessions were held. The findings support the argument that multivocality is an inherent part of heritage that shapes the dissonance regarding what should be conserved and heritage meaning-making processes. Multivocality and the resultant dissonance are further shaped by a complex mix of demographic dynamics, socio-cultural contexts, including religious values, identity struggles, the community’s articulation of the theoretical apparatus, political contexts, including power relations, the local or state political standing, the cultural heritage management (CHM) approach in place, and economic contexts, including the forward-looking nature of the younger people based on the tourist potential of the heritage. Although the resultant dissonance may be passive, it is embedded with the inert social tensions that may not necessarily be harmful to the heritage, but which provide potential spaces for conducting cultural negotiations that strive to defuse the boundaries of identities and the moral superiority–inferiority dogma. This article notes that multivocality should neither be ignored nor evaded, as it could be embraced as a medium for unlocking the sedimentation of a single discourse, understanding and addressing different experiences and expressions and resolving conflicts. The article also provides practical suggestions to the CHM authorities in Mikindani and related sites, as well as suggestions for further research.