Secrets And Silences: When and How to Reveal Challenging Histories

AASLH

Historians disclose uncomfortable truths. We walk genealogists through shame as we divulge “family secrets.” Sometimes we refute the stories people tell about themselves, or the accounts that historic sites share with the world. This panel will explore the awkward, messy, and occasionally revelatory task of sharing upsetting and silenced narratives. Chair: Annie Anderson, Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site, Philadelphia, PA; Sharece Blakney, Mid-Atlantic Regional Center for the Humanities, Camden, NJ; Dennis Pickeral, Stenton Museum, Philadelphia, PA; Adrienne Whaley, Museum of the American Revolution, Philadelphia, PA