Collaborative Archaeology and Heritage Management at the Malcolm X House, Inkster, Michigan

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Democratizing Heritage Creation: How-To and When" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

This presentation reflects upon the process and contributions of collaborative archaeology involved in the Malcolm X House Project in Inkster, Michigan. The 800-square-foot home was where Malcolm Little was living in 1952 when he assumed leadership roles in the Nation of Islam, changed his name to Malcolm X, and rose to international prominence as a civil rights leader. In 2020 the Inkster-based non-profit Project We Hope, Dream, Believe partnered with local archaeologists and historic preservationists to secure funds to purchase and restore the derelict house into a museum and community center commemorating Malcolm X’s legacy. Archaeological investigations were deemed by the non-profit to be an integral component of the project. We detail how collaborations between the non-profit, local residents, and archaeologists succeeded in navigating historic preservation and fundraising efforts and empowered an underrepresented community to establish leadership roles in the preservation of civil rights heritage sites locally and statewide.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Democratizing Heritage Creation: How-To and When   •
• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 39258.0