Karen Heege <[log in to unmask]>  wrote:

    Subject: Ethnic, immigrant collections policies

"Greetings listers;

I am interested in hearing from a wide variety of musuems that are
addressing the issue of collecting from ethnic, immigrant and/or refugee
communities. While I am aware of culturally specific museums, i.e. Swedish
or Native peoples, I looking for information from general museums..."

Reply:
The Balch Institute for Ethnic Studies in Philadelphia has a museum,
library, archives, and education program dedicated to study of American
immigration, ethnicity, and diversity.  Check out our web site at
http://www.balchinstitute.org .   Click on "Exhibits" and scroll down to
"Selections from the Museum Collection"  This is an on-line version of a
book published in the mid 1990s, and the Introduction includes collection
policies as of that date.   We are reviewing those policies again,but  I
don't expect major changes.

We have presented historical exhibits (Peopling of Pennsylvania), thematic
ones (Ethnic Images in Toys and Games, Ethnic Weddings in America) and
specific/ethnographic ones (Philadelphia's Chinatown, a recently closed
exhibit on Asian Indians, one on Philadelphia's Arab American community to
open next month.)  Examples of some past exhibits are on line.   Currently,
our research/exhibition planning (and we hope, collecting) is focused on our
New Immigrants Initiatives--groups that have largely come to the US since
the 1960s. (last year presenting Indians, this year Arabs, next year --
research now under way -- on new immigrants from Africa.)  All of these
projects have included advisory committees from these communities, which are
important as ways to build ties, gather information and evaluate it, and to
gain entre and legitimacy.   We are doing field work -- interviews,
photographs, oral histories,besides gathering loans or gifts of items for an
eventual exhibit, as well as possible contributions for our permanent
collections (archives and museum.)   Feel free to contact me off line and I
can share more information.

Robert Tabak, Ph.D.
Director of Programs
Balch Institute for Ethnic Studies

=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).