Museums for peace: Decolonial museology of painful heritage in Colombia

Colonial structures in knowledge production have hindered recognition of decolonial practices in memory work and museums as agents of social transformation. “Museums for Peace” is a research initiative focused on community-based memory museums in Colombia. Its framework draws on critical, social, and community-based museologies, alongside decolonial and feminist perspectives on knowledge production and emotions. The initiative explored museological contributions to peacebuilding through a two-stage methodology addressing memory work around violent pasts linked to colonization and armed conflict. Engaged research with three civil society organizations identified four emergent factors: focus on socio-economic causes of violence; integration of traditional and performative museographic practices; debate over communities as sources versus experts as knowledge producers; and critical engagement with memory’s normative framework. We define decolonial museums as spaces that challenge colonial tendencies to relegate painful memories, engaging instead with the multiplicity of heritage as a tool for reflection and peacebuilding.