Empirical honesty and the ethical role of archaeologists in divided societies

Summary

Negotiating the politics of the present while staying true to the evidence of the past is the central challenge of responsible, ethically-engaged archaeological practice: the line between the archaeologist and the citizen is never clear cut. Questions of moral obligation and the imperative to respect multiple perspectives are of particular resonance when dealing with contested histories in conflict-ridden and post-conflict societies. Archaeology in these contexts carries risks, but also the potential for transformative social benefit. In post-Troubles Northern Ireland where society remains divided into two communities, broadly drawn as Catholic/Nationalist and heir to the Gaels, and Protestant/Unionist/ heir to 17th-century settlers, archaeology is playing a critical role in conflict resolution through bringing evidence for a shared past to discourses over a shared future. But mobilisation of this past for the benefit of the future involves choices over the exploration and interpretation of archaeological evidence, and explicitly destabilises oppositional community identities, making cross-community collaborative practice essential. As an archaeologist working with local groups across the community divide, the need to balance issues of evidence, ethics, and respect for individual and community narratives is the subject of constant negotiation but is core to the development of an empirically informed, ethically-engaged archaeological practice.

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This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)   •
• Sound of Theory

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