Taxpayers’ cash used to rewrite history ‘written by white men’

TAXPAYERS’ money has been spent on decolonising England’s museums to address history “written by white men”.

Museum Development England has vowed to help with “equity and inclusion” among its target clientele or lesser-known cultural attractions, which includes museums dedicated to cricket and knitwear.

Guidance offered to niche cultural sites by the publicly-funded body described the “racist narratives” and “implicit racism” in museums, and stated that the history they present has been written by “white, wealthy” men.

The advisory body – which receives £3million a year from the Arts Council – shared this material as part of a new “Equity and Inclusion” training programme for managers which includes “Decolonising the Museum” sessions.

A sample of “introductory resources” states: “History is written by the winners and in Europe and the British Empire, the winners tend to have been white, wealthy, able-bodied men.

“There is a call to ‘decolonise’ museums to address their implicit racism (and sexism and ableism).”

The document states: “The artificial concept of race has been the foundation of further theories that have aimed to justify the oppression of people who are not white.

“This creation of a narrative of inferiority has taken part, sometimes subtly, in social and cultural institutions. Racist narratives and assumptions, therefore, inevitably underlie the creation of many museum collections and how they have been interpreted.”

Museum Development – split into nine regional groups – helps museums to become officially accredited by Arts Council England, and these are typically small-scale attractions. Sites seeking accreditation include the Yorkshire Cricket Museum, the Postal Museum in London, the Hovercraft Museum on the Solent, the National Glass Centre, and Isle of Wight Bus and Coach Museum.