ABSTRACT
Can modern museums be decolonized? What does decolonizing modern museums entail? What is the aim of decolonization with respect to institutions of cultural representation? I develop answers to these questions by examining how modern museums perpetuate colonial alienation, through usurpation of representational authority and misappropriation of cultural representation. The chapter then discusses how museums may decolonize through embarking on institutional transformations that promote disalienation and nonalienation, and how these efforts can contribute to the ongoing struggle to decolonize democratic and global politics. The role of museums in addressing colonial alienation may best be served by their ability to help bury the idea of a neutral and objective account of ‘the heritage of humanity’.
