Paper short abstract:

This paper explores the relationship between national representation and multicultural states, and the responsibility of heritage institutions to hold collections about, and reach out to, ever diversifying communities.

Paper long abstract:

National identities are fluid, they move and shape with new local and global events of significance. Changing demographics, popular culture and political rhetoric all shift the way national identity is collectively understood, and how this identity is framed and displayed. However they don't always shift together and for some their understanding of national identity develops as a reaction against changing demographics. With ideas of 'native' and 'alien' at play, aspects of cultural behaviour are ascribed to racial identity, religious beliefs, sexuality and gender in a manner intrinsically linked to the land in which one was born, giving way to ideas of cultural essentialism.

This paper will integrate what responsibility is held by public institutions who work under the constraints of impartiality, integrity and objectivity, to their increasingly diverse communities. How can historical collections that were created as a means of maintaining law, order and surveillance in a state that excluded some as citizens with equal rights, in an inclusive way? How can national identities be constructed in a way that blurs geographical boundaries, to be permissible for people to hold multiple, layered identities in a non-contradictory manner? Using evidence held within the archives we can explore various responses by the state to changing demographics and idea of an evolving national identity.