Cassie Anderson et al (USA): Continuous acts of beginning:

Cassie Anderson et al (USA): Continuous acts of beginning: Descendant healing, a U.S. Confederate Memorial, and lessons learned from collaborating on interpretation What happens when a U.S. national park responsible for interpreting a plantation and confederate memorial admits its mistakes, prioritises healing, redesigns its storytelling to uplift descendant voices, and then gets censored by its own agency? We’ll explore recent years of dialogue, trust, and interpretation between descendant families and the National Park Service at Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial, in Virginia, U.S.A. In 2021, enslaved and enslaver descendants came together through dialogue and formed the Arlington House Family Circle. They’ve built skills, and nurtured trust and familiarity both among descendant family members and between descendants and the park service. These learnings have necessitated bold, new interpretive approaches in order for the park to honour descendant voices and help park rangers share this complex story with the public. We will reflect on the journey and the challenges ahead as we continue moving forward together. Cassie Anderson is the former interpretive manager of Arlington House. Together with Stephen E. Hammond and Custis Glover (Arlington House Descendants’ Family Circle Members) and Dr. Susan M. Glisson, founder of the Welcome Table Collaborative, the team brings perspectives of enslaved and enslaver family descendants, a racial healing facilitator, and site interpretive manager.