Archaeology under the Blinding Light of Race

2020/09/28 by Michael L. Blakey · 16 citations
Social Sciences · #Historical and Cultural Archaeology Studies #Anthropological Studies and Insights #Archaeology and Rock Art Studies

paper · pdf · doi:10.1086/710357

Abstract

Racism is defined as a modern system of inequity emergent in Atlantic slavery in which “Whiteness” is born and embedded. This essay describes its transformation. The operation of racist Whiteness in current archaeology and related anthropological practices is demonstrated in the denigration and exclusion of Black voices and the denial of racism and its diverse appropriations afforded the White authorial voice. The story of New York’s African Burial Ground offers a case in point.

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