Museums are an important part of today’s society; they are essential to the diffusion of cultures and ideas, the presentation of the world’s history, and the display of the ornate works of artists throughout it. However, the actual background of these artifacts are often concealed to mask how they were actually obtained. The short movie clip from Black Panther (2018) explores the same theme that was discussed in class: whether or not illegally acquired relics that are currently on display in museums (usually in the Western world) should be returned to their places of origin. In cases like these, the artifacts were likely taken out of their original countries during war or times of oppression. Furthermore, the history of these items are often incorrectly presented to the visitors, which counters the museum’s original purpose: to portray history accurately. Nevertheless, these items cannot all be returned to their native homes due to the dissolving of certain cultures and the inevitable shift of countries’ borders. Although some of these items should be returned, the museums should focus on correctly presenting information about these artifacts.

In the Black Panther scene, the director of the museum incorrectly informs the main character about an African hammer, stating that it was from the Fula tribe in Benin, and omits details about its acquisition. The director is then corrected by him, who states that the relic was “taken by British solders in Benin, but it’s from Wakanda”. Although the country of Wakanda is fictional, the event mirrors real-life issues about museums presenting false or incomplete information. In the United States, many African-American museums and “plantation homes” downplay the real horrors and crimes of slavery. Although there has been significant improvement to these museums in the 20th century, many of these displays unavoidably downplay the challenges African-Americans faced during and after slavery.

In Brooms’ essay, “Lest We Forget”, he explores how African-American culture and slavery is presented throughout several museums in the United States. Brooms explains that many of these museums actually portray the brutal treatment and hardships of African slaves in the past, but concedes that some museums omit details due to years of the mention of slavery being silenced, stating that “slavery has suffered from silences, social forgetting, and collective amnesia”. However, he ultimately argues that museums are valuable because they show how the past is connected to the present and are a key part of representation in today’s setting.

In conclusion, although museums often contain illegally or unfairly acquired works, returning every relic to its place of origin is difficult and museums should instead focus on accurately portraying the history of these items in their displays.