on the uses of relativism: fact, conjecture, and black and white histories at Colonial Williamsburg

At Colonial Williamsburg, the idea that histories are interpretations that change in relation to changing social circumstances competes with a notion of history as “just the facts.” The first approach, historical relativism, is more frequently enunciated in presentations of African‐American history than in presentations of the history of the founding fathers. The museum thus asserts that black history is “conjectural,” but it continues to present mainstream history as factual. Ironically, then, multiculturalism (the inclusion of a previously excluded group) and relativism work to shore up the legitimacy of mainstream history by making it seem more real and truthful than the history of other groups. [ museums, African‐American history, public history, cultural relativism, multiculturalism, Colonial Williamsburg ]