Truth and Reconciliation: Archivists as Reparations Activists

This article examines the relationship between reparations campaigns and archives. It argues that this relationship requires archivists to take on the role of reparations activists, particularly in the campaign for black reparations in the United States. The article takes the form of a literature review, analyzing selected articles to establish the theoretical connection between archives and reparations, to demonstrate this connection through case studies, and to show that archivists have a particular obligation when it comes to reparations for racial discrimination and violence against black people in the United States. Finally, the article explores the ways that archival practices can be turned toward reparative justice. This is a call for American archivists to recognize their complicity in systemic racism and in so doing, become activists for reparations.