Wrought-Iron Slave Collar, Lock, and Key

Wrought-Iron Slave Collar, Lock, and Key

My mini exhibition theme is Black Lives Matter which is why I chose the artifact wrought - iron slave collar, lock and key. This artifact shows just how brutal the treatment of African Americans was due to slavery and racism. This also connects to the Black Lives Matter Movement in the current society because, even though slavery was abolished, people still must fight for equality and respect. Museums around the world that are filled with stolen artifacts, such as the wrought - iron slave collar, should be returned back to the owners of the artifact. In the article, ‘Artists are Calling for Museums to Return Stolen Artifacts’ by Amina Kaabi, Kaabi explains the theft of African artifacts by explaining that, “Now, many more are pushing for the return of African artifacts that were stolen during colonization, including those housed in American museums. But the British Museum in London, which is estimated to hold at least 73,000 artifacts from sub-Saharan Africa has largely ignored any petitions for returning the looted objects” (Kaabi). This artifact shows the absolute pain that African Americans had to go through and the artifact should not have been stolen just so it can sit on display. The owner of the artifact should have had the right to put it on display or not, especially since it is such a disturbing artifact. No one should be enjoying the stolen artifacts of African Culture if people continue to mistreat African Americans, and people of color. People around the world must push for the return of these artifacts so they can either be kept by the owner or given to museums, instead of stolen for them.

People are constantly fighting for a change when it comes to the racism that people of color must face every single day and the slave collar is just one of the many examples of pain that had to be endured. In the article, ‘The Top 36 Must See Items at the African American Museum’ by Philip Kennicott and Peggy McGlone, the authors explain the slave collar shown at the bottom by stating that,“The roughly hewn iron of this restraint emphasizes the harsh realities of the slave trade. It was probably used to chain enslaved African American men to each other as they were moved from one place to another” (Kennicott, McGlone). Slavery began a long time ago and even though it may be not happening in the current society, the discrimination of African American’s are still prominent. The wrought - iron slave collar is a reminder of the pain and suffering that slaves had to endure. The iron collar in the picture would be locked onto a slaves neck so that way they had no free movement when traveling from place to place. This is the reason why the Black Lives Matter Movement is so important to me. No one deserves the prejudice and racism that has continued on through the years. The extremely disturbing cycle of racism and discrimination must stop but it will only stop if everyone fights for equality as a whole. The racist people in the world who are extremely prejudiced have an inferiority complex that has affected many people and still continues to affect people today. This inferiority complex began years ago and still continues on into today even through all the movements that have occurred to stop this mistreatment. Sadly, people of color are still driven to be fearful every day because there is no sure way to know who, in today's society, has an inferiority complex. This artifact is so important because people in today’s society must see just how wicked the treatment and punishment was for Africans Americans. This brutal conversation must continue to occur until humans can change this extremely disturbing behavior. If anyone wants the racist beliefs of people with inferiority complexes to change, then artifacts, such as this one, must be shown so that people can recognize if they are discriminating in any way. The discrimination and racism of people of color will not change at all unless people are forced everyday to see the brutal mistreatment that has been endured since before the 1800’s. This mistreatment has been happening for many years and nothing is going to change if people continue to tip toe around tough conversations, such as slavery.

In my last catalog entry I spoke about the artifact, ‘Glass Plate Lantern Slide with Slave with Lacerated Back’ which showed an escaped slave named Gordons who had been whipped on the back. Both of the artifacts that I have shown in this catalog entry as well as my first catalog entry, which showed Gordon, connect to my mini exhibition because this artifact shows the treatment of enslaved people and the picture of Gordon shows how even if Africans Americans were not enslaved, they still had to endure punishment. The Black Lives Matter Movement is so important because even though the mistreatment of African Americans, in today’s society, may not be physical, people are still affected by racism and discrimination. The fact that this is still continuing into 2021 is disgusting because over the years the physical mistreatment may have stopped, but the mental and emotional mistreatment still continues, even though it is a different form. We are all human, and we are all the same which is why it is so important for the push for change to continue.

Kleinman, Avery. “Museums Are Filled With Stolen African Art, Is It Time To Return it?” The 1A, 2020, https://the1a.org/segments/art-repatriation-museums/. 

McGlone, Peggy and Kennicott, Philip. The Top 36 Must-See Items at the African American Museum. The Washington Post, 2016. The Washington Post,
www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/lifestyle/national-museum-of-african-american-histor y-and-culture/must-see-exhibit-items/.

Kaabi, Amina. “Artists Are Calling For Museums to Return Stolen African Artifacts.” Milleworld, 2020, https://www.milleworld.com/museums-stolen-african-art-returned/. 

Madison Craig, Student, Fitchburg State University

Bill Ayadi