AIC Philadelphia Symposium – report

On Friday 14 November 2025, AIC in conjunction with UPenn Urban Studies hosted a symposium titled ‘Archiving the Inner City: Race and the Politics of Memory in Philadelphia’. We were delighted to exhibit photographs of Black urban heritage by Monique Perry, who was also able to join us on the day.  The event was opened by Dr Julia McWilliams from Penn and Dr Gareth Millington from University of York.

The first panel session was titled ‘How is the Philly inner city being remembered?’ and speakers were Irteza Mohyuddin (UPenn/ University of York), Toby Seay (Drexel University/ Sigma Sound Studios Collection), Beth Naomi Lewis (Artist/ Seventh Ward Legacy), Keir Johnston (Amber Art and Design), and Michael Clemmons (Black Docents Collective/ AAMP). Topics discussed included considering why there has been an explosion of memory work and cultural heritage in Philadelphia concerning Black urban life and the ‘inner city’ and what, if anything, makes Philadelphia special in this respect. It was also considered the factors that are making this work so urgent. The panel also discussed sections of the public or authorities that have not responded positively to Black urban heritage initiatives.

The second panel was titled ‘The inner city, memory and heritage: What is preserved, what is lost and why?’. The panel was comprised byRichard White (Black Docents Collective/ AAMP), Yvonne Blake (Hakim’s Book Store), Marisa Williamson (Artist/ Sweet Chariot (Monument Lab)), Kevin Loughran (Temple University) and Sarah Linn and Chrislyn Laurore (Heritage West/ Penn Museum). The issues discussed included the kinds of things from Philadelphia’s Black urban past that are being preserved, ‘heritagized’ and committed to memory and who chooses, in addition to who is driving the archiving and heritage agenda. In addition, panel members offered reflections on what, from Philadelphia’s Black history is being forgotten, obscured or  erased, how and why is this happening and how might it be challenged. An important issue, which also came up in discussions in the first session, was whether a focus on the city’s past might be used in ways that obscures or distracts from contemporary issues or problems. Is the past sometimes too ‘heavy’ a weight on the present or does remembering the past offer hope for the future?

AIC and Penn Urban Studies would like to thank all speakers as well as the large, engaged audience comprised of academics, practitioners and members of the public.