| This dissertation examines a community museum and its potential to increase civic engagement within a displaced community. If central to their mission, museums can initiate the reconstruction of memories in order to rebuild communities. Many museum professionals have written on the museum as a setting for egalitarianism, such as Eileen Hooper-Greenhill who writes, "They [museums] were seen as suitable places where all classes of people might meet on common ground. Thus museums were seen as ideal institutions that offered radical potential for social equality, achieved through learning" (Hooper-Greenhill, 1993, p. 9).; Recently, museums in the United States have been assessing how they can build bridges with the communities they serve. However, meeting the community needs appears to be one of too many tasks taken on by museum boards, and therefore it is rarely central to the museum's mission. This dissertation examines the process for meeting community needs by researching the evolution of one museum, the District Six Museum in Cape Town, South Africa. By employing the case study methodology and using grounded theory as a method of analysis, I pursued the audiences served through observations and interviews. However, the challenge of finding the observation and interview sample lead to an investigation of the ex-resident audience, and why there was a decrease in their attendance. In the end it became clear that the data collected illustrate the complexity of memory and the connection between remembering District Six at the Museum and in the home. The data illustrate the institutionalization of a grass-roots, community museum that is resolute to meet the needs of the entire displaced community, as well as provide support for those who want to rebuild District Six.; The challenge of being displaced unites the ex-residents of District Six, and the Museum's ability to contribute to the ongoing community discourse is admirable and relevant to community museums across the globe. As a museum educator committed to meeting community needs, this dissertation seeks to understand how museums can initiate civic engagement while providing the opportunity to heal through the reconstruction of memories. |
