Skift Take
The pandemic has made fundraising for museums all the harder in such tough economic times. But nearly five months after the killing of George Floyd and a summer filled with promises, Black tourism attractions are still waiting for more than lip service.
Many companies this summer joined the Black Lives Matter activism wave penning tweets, Facebook posts, and informative press releases denouncing racism at the height of protests. Yet, for many critics, the surge of corporate activism was nothing short of performative lip service.
Now, nearly five months after the killing of George Floyd, Black history and cultural institutions in the United States that draw tourists from all over the globe say the support from donations has been anything but consistent.
It's unfortunate, particularly since Covid-19 has put museums and arts groups into perilous financial straits. Advocates argue the viability of those Black-focused institutions are more important now than ever before.
Impactful activism hinges on painting a fuller picture of American history and honoring the Black contribution to the American social fabric, says tourism officials.
“One of the biggest issues we see right now is the misinformation and miseducation of non-minority populations," Brigette Jones, curator of social history at the Tennessee State Museum, told Skift.
“When you look at our erasure from history, from the literary movement, the classical music movement, and then you add physical erasure with what you see from the police — what you see is America’s true relationship with Black Americans — and it’s th
