Black communities are using mapping to document and restore a sense of place
However, many issues in the history of Black Americans can get lost in a focus on well-known historical figures or other important events.
- However, many issues in the history of Black Americans can get lost in a focus on well-known historical figures or other important events.
- Today, communities are using “restorative mapping” as a way to tell stories of Black Americans.
Maps as a visual storytelling technique
- While most people think of maps as a useful tool to get from point A to point B, or use maps to look up places or plan trips, the reality is all maps tell stories.
- Like many marginalized groups, Black people have used maps as a visual story-telling technique for “talking back” against their oppression.
- They have also used maps for enlivening and giving dignity to Black experiences and histories.
- The SNCC research department’s maps and research on racism played a pivotal role in planning civil rights protests.
Maps for restorative justice
- Restorative mapping is an important part of the Living Black Atlas: It helps bring visibility to Black experiences that have been marginalized or forgotten.
- An important example of restorative mapping work comes from the Honey Pot Performance, a collective of Black feminists who helped create the Chicago Black Social Culture Map, or the CBSCM.
While engaging Black Americans in the effort, the CBSCM map tells the story of Chicago through a series of artistic movements that highlight African Americans’ connection with the city. After years of gentrification and urban renewal programs that displaced Black people from the city, this project is helping remember those neighborhoods digitally. It is also inviting a broader discussion about the history of Black Chicago.
Restoring a sense of place
- This connects with the broader restorative justice movement that seeks to address historic wrongs by documenting past and present injustices through perspectives that are often ignored or forgotten.
- Thus, the map helps highlight how this geography is still present in Chicago in archives and people’s memories.
- Through this digital representation of Black Chicagoans’ deep cultural roots in the city, the mapping aims to restore a sense of place.
The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.