Interrogating authority and re-surfacing black thought were central to the curation process of this exhibit. The material heritage of Penn School and Penn Center Inc., held within two large archival collections, contain an endlessly faceted prism of experiences. This exhibit is just one of countless ways the Penn School and Penn Center stories can be told. As Historian Ras Michael Brown contended in 2019, “large tracts of the unknown between these visible points leave us unsure of how to reach out to those we find in this place, as we catch glimpses of what looks familiar at the same time, we confront much that we have never experienced" (p. 21).
Toward surfacing marginalized thoughts, narratives, and presence within the archive, this exhibit was curated with the intention of interrogating the uncritical use of historical sources that contain paternalist and racist ideologies. As LeRhonda S. Manigault-Bryant warned in 2014, to continually rely upon bigoted sources as accurate representations without interrogation will perpetuate the limited perspectives articulated within these materials. Penn Normal Industrial and Agricultural School primary sources often function to surveil black Gullah and Geechee people, while the pedagogies and correspondences of white educators’ function as the sole voices of authority. After 1948, Penn Center primary sources reckon with the paternalist past of Penn School with kind curiosity, toward embracing the diversity of voices that arise through interracial cooperation, allowing black and white voices to share authority.
During the curation process, when I experienced an affective response to a photo or correspondence, I reflected on my reality that I was curating an exhibit with my whole, affective self: as a Wilson Library graduate assistant and a brown woman. Honoring the affective quality of Penn materials, I felt deeply compelled to curate an exhibit that honored stakeholders of Penn Center Inc. and stakeholders pursuing community driven archives projects, who are often themselves marginalized within their library environments. Community driven archives projects require that communities within and outside of an institution share authority in the curation process, on a shared path towards justice. Echoing the words of Historian and Philosopher Howard Zinn, “I believe the time is past for philanthropy, for missionary work, for good Samaritans and kindly advisers. We are all in it together" (1982, p. 57).
- Brianna McGruder