The Initiative

Migration has a past, a present and a future
Migration museums can build a bridge between all three

The International Network of Migration Institutions includes museums and other institutions promoting the public understanding of migration.
The current trend in the development of migration museums, named differently worldwide, is an interesting phenomenon, as it may contribute to the creation of a new and multiple identity, at an individual and collective level. Like the United States with Ellis Island, Australia, Canada, and more recently several European countries – e.g. France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom – have been creating such venues to facilitate transmission between generations as well as encounters between migrants and the host populations, by telling their personal story.

While these initiatives also serve the duty to remember, they seem to have three main objectives: Acknowledge, integrate and build awareness.
- Acknowledge: The contributions made by migrants to their host societies; the diversity and wealth of the origin cultures and; the right to a dual-belonging.
- Include and Integrate: Foster the sense of belonging; enable the communities to feel an integral part of the nation; find common ground and contribute to a national identity.
- Build awareness and educate on the events that induced individuals - and refugees in particular - to leave their land, thus developing empathy among the host population. More generally, deconstruct stereotypes on immigration.

Given the international scene and the latest events, from the Van Gogh affair in the Netherlands in 2004 to the so-called ‘crise des banlieues’ in France in 2005, there is an urgent need to give the migrant generations (the youth as well as their parents) a voice, in order to foster inclusion, integration and the right to difference. Listening to individual stories may help to deconstruct stereotypes. Memory, History and Narration may also allow to take a step back and to consider the complete picture.

Migration museums also face common challenges, in that they intend to be not only a venue for conservation and exhibition, but also and above all a lively meeting place. The challenge is not so much to bring in the intellectuals, academics, researchers, historians, traditional visitors of museums (the converted) but also and above all to attract the general public, those with preconceived ideas on immigration and the migrants themselves. UNESCO and the IOM have decided to work together to promote exchange of information and experiences on the history of immigration and the memories of migrants, notably through helping to set up and develop museums in receiving countries. This kind of museum would, in particular, help collect, safeguard, highlight and make accessible to the general public certain elements relating to the history and culture of immigration, and to the process of integration of migrant communities.

Expert Meeting on Migration Museums
23 to 25 October 2006 -  Rome (Italy)

The first stage of the UNESCO-IOM project was a meeting of experts and representatives of around ten receiving countries, to foster exchange of information and experience. Attending the meeting and sharing information and experiences were experts (from Australia, Brazil, Denmark, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom) who looked at the current status of existing museums and museum-related plans in progress. This meeting gave the unique opportunity to start an international network of specialists, including representatives of existing migration museums, receiving countries wishing to have such museums, as well as the main immigrant communities, and representatives from the world of education and science.

Related link
Agenda of the meeting (pdf)
Final Statement (English)
Final Statement (French)
Final report in English (pdf)
Final report in Portuguese (pdf)