In the early 1990s, Colombia developed a highly sophisticated constitutional and judicial framework. The Constitution of 1991 offers two sets of principles: First, the rights granted to minority groups so they might guide their lives according to their traditions and the recognition of the multicultural character of the nation. Second, the values of unity and sovereignty and universal human dignity, the minimum denominator that unites the Colombian people. In the context of a multicultural nation, what is the role of museums in supporting demands of minorities and disenfranchised groups? This paper looks at the issue of differentiated rights for Afro‐descendents through analysis of Wakes and Live Saints among Black, Afro‐Colombian, Maroon and Islander Communities at the National Museum of Colombia (2008). This exhibition was chosen because Afro‐Colombian activists and scholars have strongly demanded that the National Museum respond to claims of historical reparation.
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