Race, Representation, and Museums Series Lecture

Joe Watkins (Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma), Adjunct Associate Professor, Department of Anthropology, University of Maryland

The United States was in the early stages of Reconstruction when Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1866, mandating that “all persons born in the United States” with the exception of American Indians be declared citizens. That December, the tension between the U.S. government and Indian nations intensified as Lakota Chief Red Cloud launched one of the most successful wars against the United States in Wyoming. Between these two events, on October 8, 1866, the Peabody Museum was established and began to collect Native American artifacts. Within this historical context, Joe Watkins will discuss how the museum’s work has shifted since its founding—from collecting artifacts of cultures to collaborating with Native communities.

Free and open to the public. 

Presented in collaboration with the Departments of Anthropology and Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University and the Harvard University Native American Program

Free event parking available at the 52 Oxford Street Garage.

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