I may need a bit to unpack everything in here! I thank you for the links, that will help. It seems like the Hermitage is still at the baseline of inclusion in their historical narrative, taking "baby steps" toward a realistic presentation. This is true of most tourism-driven historic sites of enslavment. I noticed they offer event rentals, the website has as slick "wedding" video that I watched (sound off.) There was a very light sprinkling of non-white people in the mix; again, doing the very minimum.
Celebrations at enslavement sites are tricky, particularly for history lovers. The income generated by these expensive rentals does a great deal to support preservation, so there's that part, but paying a lot of money to kick off your married life on the grounds where people were held in bondage for traumatized generations is weird, even for the most tone-deaf among us. Keep it coming, I'm enjoying your journey!
Thanks so much for this response, Hillary. Oh, that wedding video! Yeah--when I saw they had a line-up of Juneteenth events, I thought their "true storytelling" might be a lot more developed than I had observed in person, but so many of the options are essentially for entertainment. I also notice they are nearly co-branded with Natchez Hills Winery. I had more for this story but had to move on and started to feel like I was writing a consumer review. And that wedding video--eeek!
While I understand your concern about sounding too much like a consumer review, the depth of analysis you bring to your observations are very much appreciated and elevate your commentary leaps and bounds ahead of what any Yelp review might deliver. I especially appreciate how you connect your critique of the tour's standard presentation to logically extrapolate what effect it may be having on further emboldening the dreadful conspicuousness of the white supremacist movement. This is important work. Thank you.
"dreadful conspicuousness" -- great phrase to describe it! Wait until I get around to the story on this weekend at the beautiful Suwannee River--never seen so many Confederate flags and signs on fences threatening to kill you.
I may need a bit to unpack everything in here! I thank you for the links, that will help. It seems like the Hermitage is still at the baseline of inclusion in their historical narrative, taking "baby steps" toward a realistic presentation. This is true of most tourism-driven historic sites of enslavment. I noticed they offer event rentals, the website has as slick "wedding" video that I watched (sound off.) There was a very light sprinkling of non-white people in the mix; again, doing the very minimum.
Celebrations at enslavement sites are tricky, particularly for history lovers. The income generated by these expensive rentals does a great deal to support preservation, so there's that part, but paying a lot of money to kick off your married life on the grounds where people were held in bondage for traumatized generations is weird, even for the most tone-deaf among us. Keep it coming, I'm enjoying your journey!
Thanks so much for this response, Hillary. Oh, that wedding video! Yeah--when I saw they had a line-up of Juneteenth events, I thought their "true storytelling" might be a lot more developed than I had observed in person, but so many of the options are essentially for entertainment. I also notice they are nearly co-branded with Natchez Hills Winery. I had more for this story but had to move on and started to feel like I was writing a consumer review. And that wedding video--eeek!
While I understand your concern about sounding too much like a consumer review, the depth of analysis you bring to your observations are very much appreciated and elevate your commentary leaps and bounds ahead of what any Yelp review might deliver. I especially appreciate how you connect your critique of the tour's standard presentation to logically extrapolate what effect it may be having on further emboldening the dreadful conspicuousness of the white supremacist movement. This is important work. Thank you.
"dreadful conspicuousness" -- great phrase to describe it! Wait until I get around to the story on this weekend at the beautiful Suwannee River--never seen so many Confederate flags and signs on fences threatening to kill you.