Monuments Toolkit Webinar Series 

This month's theme sets aside our initial thoughts on oppressive monuments to gauge the figure's relevancy and potential for redemption. Although their history cannot be changed, one may be quick to vouch for removal/destruction before understanding the full picture. Together in collaboration with The Alliance for the Restoration of Cultural Heritage (ARCH International), and the staff of Memento Park in Budapest, Hungary, our panelists will analyze the unique solutions applied to case studies around the world and the strengths of incorporating public law contemporary public spaces.

Following the destruction of the Soldiers' Monument in Santa Fe Plaza on Indigenous Peoples Day, Director Cheryl Benard drafted the first handbook on dealing with controversial monuments. By incorporating criminal law, decision-makers would gain a streamlined process of navigating contention while allowing for all stakeholders to voice their perspectives. This tactic can be applied to dilemmas around the world, while positioning communities to weigh in on the fate of a monument or problematic narrative.

Memento Park houses many Soviet-era figures throughout the occupied history of Hungary from the 1900s. However, due to their displacement from public space into bare fields and in proximity of one another, they have almost become comical. In a strange twist, the public has even begun to make memes of the surviving statues; making these symbols of oppression into tourist attractions and entertainment. Despite the initial pushback, Memento Park's unique solutions have naturally embraced recontextualization as different generations of visitors are introduced.

This month's theme sets aside our initial thoughts on oppressive monuments to gauge the figure's relevancy and potential for redemption. Although their history cannot be changed, one may be quick to vouch for removal/destruction before understanding the full picture. Together in collaboration with The Alliance for the Restoration of Cultural Heritage (ARCH International), and the staff of Memento Park in Budapest, Hungary, our panelists will analyze the unique solutions applied to case studies around the world and the strengths of incorporating public law contemporary public spaces.

Following the destruction of the Soldiers' Monument in Santa Fe Plaza on Indigenous Peoples Day, Director Cheryl Benard drafted the first handbook on dealing with controversial monuments. By incorporating criminal law, decision-makers would gain a streamlined process of navigating contention while allowing for all stakeholders to voice their perspectives. This tactic can be applied to dilemmas around the world, while positioning communities to weigh in on the fate of a monument or problematic narrative.

Memento Park houses many Soviet-era figures throughout the occupied history of Hungary from the 1900s. However, due to their displacement from public space into bare fields and in proximity of one another, they have almost become comical. In a strange twist, the public has even begun to make memes of the surviving statues; making these symbols of oppression into tourist attractions and entertainment. Despite the initial pushback, Memento Park's unique solutions have naturally embraced recontextualization as different generations of visitors are introduced.

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YouTube Video VVVfUDVGcEtwdVlvb1VveTJaYmFPVWRnLmZNWDVyb0NYaVdB

Controversial Monuments on Retrial Webinar

Monuments Toolkit 6 views June 15, 2023 4:43 pm

@worldheritageusa 
Rodney Freeman has worked in academic, public, and government libraries for over ten years and has worked in multiple positions, from a library page to a library administrator. In addition, he has led several digital library projects and has been a strong advocate of diverse digital collections. Driven with passion, Rodney Freeman started Preservation LLC to help people preserve and convert their photos and documents into a digital format. Along with starting his company in 2018, Rodney developed a platform called The Black Male Archives, where the objective is to capture, curate, and promote positive stories about Black men to combat the negative images portrayed in the media.

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Deliasofia Zacarias is an artist, writer, and arts administrator whose work is rooted in accessibility, equity, community, and inclusivity. Based in Los Angeles, CA by way of Texas, she currently works at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art where she serves as Executive Administrator and Fellow in the Director's Office. She first joined LACMA as the Emerging Art Professional (LEAP) Fellow —part of the Diversifying Museum Leadership Initiative funded by the Walton Foundation and Ford Foundation. As a fellow, Deliasofia worked closely with museum leadership to better understand the role of an encyclopedic art and cultural institution and its relationship with local and global audiences. Promoted to Snap Research Fellow in 2019, she was instrumental in developing and implementing the LACMA x Snapchat: Monumental Perspectives multi-year initiative. Deliasofia is currently the Executive Administrator and Fellow in the Director's Office and serves on the board of the Arts Administrators of Color Network.

@World Heritage USA (US Natl Comm ICOMOS)
Rodney Freeman has worked in academic, public, and government libraries for over ten years and has worked in multiple positions, from a library page to a library administrator. In addition, he has led several digital library projects and has been a strong advocate of diverse digital collections. Driven with passion, Rodney Freeman started Preservation LLC to help people preserve and convert their photos and documents into a digital format. Along with starting his company in 2018, Rodney developed a platform called The Black Male Archives, where the objective is to capture, curate, and promote positive stories about Black men to combat the negative images portrayed in the media.

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Deliasofia Zacarias is an artist, writer, and arts administrator whose work is rooted in accessibility, equity, community, and inclusivity. Based in Los Angeles, CA by way of Texas, she currently works at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art where she serves as Executive Administrator and Fellow in the Director's Office. She first joined LACMA as the Emerging Art Professional (LEAP) Fellow —part of the Diversifying Museum Leadership Initiative funded by the Walton Foundation and Ford Foundation. As a fellow, Deliasofia worked closely with museum leadership to better understand the role of an encyclopedic art and cultural institution and its relationship with local and global audiences. Promoted to Snap Research Fellow in 2019, she was instrumental in developing and implementing the LACMA x Snapchat: Monumental Perspectives multi-year initiative. Deliasofia is currently the Executive Administrator and Fellow in the Director's Office and serves on the board of the Arts Administrators of Color Network.

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YouTube Video VVVfUDVGcEtwdVlvb1VveTJaYmFPVWRnLjYyRHU5WDNaVk9v

October Webinar: Centering Oppressive Spaces with Digital Media

Monuments Toolkit 34 views November 28, 2022 4:41 pm

​ @US/ICOMOS   This month’s webinar covers the historically neglected “Comfort Women”, who were kidnapped into sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Military during World War II. These memorials have been targeted and removed internationally, but the “Column of Strength” continues to stand in San Francisco. “Comfort women” memorials are not intended to insult or attribute current generations with the mistakes of the nation’s past. However, the stories they preserve have been denied recognition for years while the opposition remains steadfast. The Monuments Toolkit team is proud to collaborate with activists that seek justice for “comfort women” in both their respective regions and worldwide. Each will present their insights and experiences on cases that they have worked on personally. Joining us for this webinar are the following organizations: Lila Pilipina, The “Comfort Women” Action for Redress & Education (CARE, fka KAFC), and The “Comfort Women” Justice Coalition (CWJC).

Phyllis Kim will focus on the Glendale memorial and how it relates to protecting the legacy of “comfort women” and touch upon the ongoing struggle by the last surviving activist/victim Grandma Lee in Korea, to achieve justice before all victims pass away. Judith Mirkinson will focus on the San Francisco memorial and make a connection to the broader issue of the ongoing sexual violence against women in conflict, as well as historical denialism in the present moment and its relationship to women. Sharon Cabusao-Silva will discuss the meaning and the denialism behind the Filipino memorial, which was removed overnight by the government under the pressure from Japan, and the ongoing struggle against denialism that re-victimizes the survivors.

​ @US/ICOMOS This month’s webinar covers the historically neglected “Comfort Women”, who were kidnapped into sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Military during World War II. These memorials have been targeted and removed internationally, but the “Column of Strength” continues to stand in San Francisco. “Comfort women” memorials are not intended to insult or attribute current generations with the mistakes of the nation’s past. However, the stories they preserve have been denied recognition for years while the opposition remains steadfast. The Monuments Toolkit team is proud to collaborate with activists that seek justice for “comfort women” in both their respective regions and worldwide. Each will present their insights and experiences on cases that they have worked on personally. Joining us for this webinar are the following organizations: Lila Pilipina, The “Comfort Women” Action for Redress & Education (CARE, fka KAFC), and The “Comfort Women” Justice Coalition (CWJC).

Phyllis Kim will focus on the Glendale memorial and how it relates to protecting the legacy of “comfort women” and touch upon the ongoing struggle by the last surviving activist/victim Grandma Lee in Korea, to achieve justice before all victims pass away. Judith Mirkinson will focus on the San Francisco memorial and make a connection to the broader issue of the ongoing sexual violence against women in conflict, as well as historical denialism in the present moment and its relationship to women. Sharon Cabusao-Silva will discuss the meaning and the denialism behind the Filipino memorial, which was removed overnight by the government under the pressure from Japan, and the ongoing struggle against denialism that re-victimizes the survivors.

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YouTube Video VVVfUDVGcEtwdVlvb1VveTJaYmFPVWRnLnFNTGYzTWJSY3JN

August Webinar— Protecting the Legacy of the "Comfort Women" Through Memorials

Monuments Toolkit 55 views September 14, 2022 1:23 pm