The Future is Now: Archaeology and the Eradication of Anti-Blackness
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The Future is Now: Archaeology and the Eradication of Anti-Blackness Maria Franklin 1 Alicia Odewale 4
& Justin
P. Dunnavant 2 & Ayana Omilade Flewellen 3 &
Accepted: 7 October 2020 / Published online: 23 October 2020 # Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract Building a new anti-racist archaeology will require an unprecedented level of structural changes in the practices, demographics, and power relations of archaeology. This article considers why this iteration of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) Movement is proving to be unique in terms of its potential to transform the field. We discuss how anti-racist archaeologists arrived at this juncture prepared to meet the challenges now before us, and how members of the Society of Black Archaeologists are collaborating with others to enact change. We acknowledge the significant social justice efforts of others and suggest how archaeologists can get involved to keep this critical momentum going. Key words Race . anti-racist archaeology . Black Lives Matter . social justice
Introduction We are writing from a moment in time that hints at a sea change in how the rest of the world perceives racism and its detrimental impacts on communities of color, especially Black communities. George Floyd’s murder has galvanized protestors around the world calling for an end to racist policing and anti-Black racism on a scale and at a level of intensity that no one could have predicted even a year ago. As tragic as his death and the circumstances surrounding it are, Floyd is one individual among many who lost
* Maria Franklin [email protected]
1
Department of Anthropology, 2201 Speedway Avenue, University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712, USA
2
Department of Anthropology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
3
Department of Anthropology, University of California at Riverside, Riverside, CA, USA
4
Department of Anthropology, University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK, USA
754
International Journal of Historical Archaeology (2020) 24:753–766
their lives under similar circumstances to the police and vigilantes who criminalize Black bodies (Bokat-Lindell 2020). Patrisse Khan-Cullors, Alicia Garza, and Opal Tometi co-founded the Black Lives Matter (Black Lives Matter 2020) Movement which has undergone several iterations since it emerged after the killing of young Trayvon Martin in 2012. As Americans repeatedly witnessed the intentional murder of Black people, the reverberant call for the humanity and protection of Black Lives has continued to gain global momentum. Even though BLM organizers had their initial sights set on defunding the police (Elliott-Cooper 2020; Schnell 2020) and improving the quality of life among Black communities, its “unapologetically Black” social justice agenda has permeated nearly every aspect of society. It is now being amplified much more broadly. Is archaeology ready for the changes that BLM has instigated? The discipline’s history suggests that it may be. If so, we ask: why is this moment of Black power unique, and what a
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