Heritage and Democracy

Examining cultural heritage within the context of
democracy

Cultural
heritage is a powerful tool in society, capable of producing both social harms
as well as social goods and benefits, which can be distributed unevenly via political
channels. Reaching across disciplines and national boundaries, this volume examines
cultural heritage work within the context of both democratic institutions and
democratic practices, including participatory, deliberative, and direct
democratic practices. Case studies highlight how democratic politics and
cultural heritage shape, impact, and depend upon one another.

The
rising crisis of democracy across the globe brings these dynamics into sharp
relief. The unfinished and fragile nature of democratic politics shines a
spotlight on both its shortcomings and its aspirational potential. This is a
paradox that heritage practitioners and stakeholders navigate daily, serving as
both critics and collaborators of democracy. At the same time that heritage
practice embraces participatory approaches, it must also address the challenge
of reconciling multiple, often unequal, and frequently incompatible claims for
control over heritage. Grappling with democracy's crises also increasingly means
recognizing the power of heritage to reinforce or undermine democracy.

These
essays ask: What are the democratic motives of heritage practice? Why do
democracies need heritage? How do the social and cultural referents of heritage
infuse democratic practices? Emphasizing the interplay of heritage and
democracy in practices and institutions across scales of governance, Heritage and Democracy pinpoints a
dynamic that has not been widely examined.
Contributors: Stacey L. Camp Jon D. Daehnke Kasey Diserens Morgan Rachel Ama
Asaa Engmann Dorothy Ann Engmann Bobbie Foster Bhusari Peter G. Gould Erin
A. Hogg Kathryn Lafrenz Samuels Magda E. Mankel Chelsea H. Meloche George
P. Nicholas Ellen J. Platts Jasmine Reid Paul A. Shackel John R. Welch

A
volume in the series Cultural Heritage Studies, edited by Paul A. Shackel