#Restitutions: The archives in question

15 September | Series "#Restitutions. Another definition of the world"
Tuesday
15
September
2026
7:00 pm
9:00 pm
« Restitution – Une autre définition du monde »
Reclaiming one's history means reclaiming one's identity. At the societal level, archives therefore play a major role and are central to discussions of cultural reaffirmation. What place do they occupy today in international debates on the issue of restitution?

The discussion will take place in the context of the 60th anniversary of the World Festival of Black Arts, held in Dakar, Senegal, in 1966, which was a major moment of cultural and political reaffirmation. Sarah Frioux-Salgas, archivist at the Quai Branly Museum, and Mamadou Diouf, Professor of African Studies and History at Columbia University, will discuss the notion of “restitution” as it applies to archives and the conditions of access to resources: does this involve transfers of ownership, deposits, supervised circulation, certified copies, shared digitization, or hybrid systems?

This meeting aims to encourage critical reflection on the possible methods of restitution, sharing, or circulation of archives, while questioning the contemporary transformations in the role of heritage institutions in the face of social and political demands for recognition and reparation. The discussions will also focus on experiences of archival cooperation, as well as the resistance and controversy they provoke.

The discussions will be moderated by journalist Valérie Nivelon (RFI).

Aboout the speakers

Sarah Frioux-Salgas (1978) is a historian (specializing in slavery and Pan-Africanism) and has been an archivist at the Musée du Quai Branly-Jacques Chirac since 2003. She has curated four exhibitions at the Musée du Quai Branly-Jacques Chirac: "Présence Africaine. A Forum, a Movement, a Network“ (2009, 2011 in Dakar), ”Nancy Cunard's Black Atlantic. Negro Anthology (1931-1934)“ (2014); Dakar 66. ”Chronicle of a Pan-African Festival" (2016); “Paul Robeson. A Man of the ‘Whole World’” (2018, 2021 in Dakar), “Transcending Anthropology. Zora Neale Hurston, Eslanda Goode Robeson, Katherine Dunham” (2024). Between 2020 and 2022, she coordinated the research project “Pour un partage des archives : le festival mondial des arts nègres, Dakar 1966 (FMAN)” (Sharing the archives: the World Festival of Black Arts, Dakar 1966 (FMAN)).

Sarah Frioux-Salgas is also an editor at the publishing house Rot-Bô-Krik.

Sarah-Frioux-Salgas
© DR

Mamadou Diouf is Professor of African Studies and History at Columbia University, USA, and Visiting Professor of African History at Global Studies University, Sharjah, UAE.

About the series

#Restitutions. Another definition of the world

A series of talks conceived in collaboration with Valérie Nivelon (initiator of the Africaines Queens podcast and the La Marche du monde radio show on RFI), who will moderate the discussions.

On 7 June 1978, Amadou Mahtar Mbow — the first African Director-General of UNESCO — issued a “solemn appeal” to governments, cultural institutions, museums, libraries, historians, and artists, calling for the return of cultural property to its country of origin. Nearly fifty years after this seminal appeal, what is the current state of the debate on restitution?

The series Restitutions. Another Definition of the World offers a platform for reflection and dialogue on the challenges surrounding the restitution of works of art and cultural property acquired in contexts of violence and domination. It also addresses the related issues of memory, justice, and the circulation of heritage that these processes raise. Between April 2026 and the end of 2027, FMSH will organise six discussions exploring this complex reality at the intersection of history, law, diplomacy, and ethics.

By bringing together researchers, lawyers, collection managers, archivists, and cultural and institutional stakeholders, the series seeks to shed light on these issues and to encourage fairer, more collaborative, and more sustainable restitution practices.

Published at 9 February 2026