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“Power to the people”: Sociopolitics and the archaeology of black Americans

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Abstract

This article is concerned with the sociopolitics of African-American archaeology. The intent here is to prompt archaeologists to think more about how our research affects black Americans today, and therefore why it is necessary that they be encouraged to take an interest in archaeological endeavors. The success or failure of our attempts to establish ties with black communities depends on us. The main emphases of this article are, therefore, focused on raising our level of awareness to the challenges we face, and increasing understanding as to the variable histories and perspectives that the diverse and knowledgeable black American public possesses and will hopefully share with archaeologists.

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Franklin, M. “Power to the people”: Sociopolitics and the archaeology of black Americans. Hist Arch 31, 36–50 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03374229

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