In class, we discussed that there is a problem in museums where countries may steal artifacts from others, e.g., Universal museums and the British Museum from the “Black Panther” clip, to display them to the public as if these items are owned by them. There are several cases where the owner of the museum does not appreciate the culture or present accurate information about the history behind the displayed items, which contradicts the existence of a museum.

    The example of “Yale University” still strikes my mind. They exploited African countries to make money and destroyed the lives of black people by enslaving them. They then provide scholarships to black students to study at their university, when this money was obtained from abusing their ancestors. This is absolutely ironic and in the same way, they steal things from others for their own advantage like some other museums.

    In the case of “Maqdala 1868”, the British did not only claim the physical artifacts for themselves but also parts of the Ethiopian culture. In addition, there could be an implication that the British murdered people to obtain those “glorious” trophies, and this is unethical and inhumane compared to Tewodros, the Ethiopian emperor, who did not kill. Hence, it is argued that illegally acquired artifacts should be sent back to their owners.

    However, the damage from the outbreak of war can never be undone, even if the artifacts are returned to their owners. Additionally, if we look at the example of Maqdala again, it is extremely difficult to decide whether the British were right or not when Tewodros provoked the war first. He was insulted by the British because the people brought by the British to aid him were not highly skilled. Therefore, he imprisoned them along with other Europeans. He was a poor leader at that time, with increasing unpopularity due to his harsh methods. People rebelled against him, and some even assisted the British to launch the attack on Abyssinia. In my opinion, the British were right in their actions, because the emperor Tewodros was a bad leader that should be overthrown, and he was the reason that caused his empire to collapse. The fact that artifacts were left behind cannot be seen as “stolen” when they were the spoils of war. Moreover, the British’s aim was to rescue their own people after several failed negotiations with Tewodros, instead of stealing Abyssinian’s possessions.

    Although I do not have a strong disagreement against illegally obtained artifacts, I believe that if those possessions are displayed in a museum, they must be presented in a way that can nurture the understanding of diversified cultures as well as demonstrate the cultural heritage of indigenous people. In the “Black Panther” clip, I would totally disapprove the idea of acquiring and maintaining the right to hold those artifacts when the British do not have the correct information or even lie about the history of them.