Vandalism or Protest? CWU Professor Comments

When someone spray painted "KKK," "Black Lives Matter" and "Murderer" on the base of a statue of a Confederate soldier at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, people took to social media to discuss the incident. Many--including those who want the statue removed--criticized the tactic, calling it vandalism. Some comments were quite critical of whoever wrote those things, with many comments assuming they were students . . . .

Mark Auslander, associate professor of anthropology and museum studies at Central Washington University, who has written extensively about ties between American colleges and the institution of slavery, said that many colleges have not addressed their own histories in this regard and should expect more "historical guerrilla warfare" as a result.

Read the rest of Scott Jaschik's story in Inside Higher Ed.

In addition, Auslander has been invited to give a TedX Salon talk about racial justice and historical reenactment in the TED Talk Tuesdays series on Tuesday, July 14, at 7:00 p.m., at the Yakima Valley Museum, 2105 Tieton Dr. in Yakima. The event is limited to 100 attendees; tickets may be purchased at the door for $5.