Curated by Noah Fuller and John Kuo Wei Tchen
Associate Curator: Mark Tseng Putterman
NYU Kimmel Windows Gallery
LaGuardia Place and West 3rd Street
Viewable from the street 24/7
“The Normal”: Images from the Haunted Files of Eugenics re-presents images from public displays of the American eugenics movement. Once exhibited at museums and state fairs nationwide, this propaganda helped to drive popular support for eugenics-motivated legislation such as immigration restriction, mass institutionalization, and the forced eugenic sterilization of the “unfit.”
“The Normal” unveils these artifacts again to open up earnest discussion on the past’s relation to today’s debates and policies about racism, immigration, disability and reproductive rights. Alongside Haunted Files: The Eugenics Record Office, which explores the “science” behind eugenics’ popular claims, this installation asks: from private biases to public policies, how far have we come from eugenics-era America?
A project by the Asian/Pacific/American Institute at NYU, Haunted Files consists of a series of installations and public programs, as well as an online space.
Related Haunted Files Installation:
Haunted Files: The Eugenics Record Office, a complementary installation, is on view at the Asian/Pacific/American Institute at NYU (8 Washington Mews) from Friday, October 3, 2014-Friday, March 13, 2015. Hours and details.
Haunted Files Programs:
Opening Reception for Haunted Files: The Eugenics Record Office on Thursday, October 2, 2014, 7-9PM
Opening Reception for “The Normal”: Images from the Haunted Files of Eugenics on Thursday, October 30, 2014, 6-7:30PM
A Haunted Walk Tour on Thursday, November 6, 2014, 6PM (open to students only)
A Eugenic (Un)Haunting: Extricating the Legacy of American Eugenics From Contemporary Politics and Praxis on Thursday, November 20, 2014, 7-9PM
Postponed: AMERICA & ITS “UNFIT”— EUGENICS & NOW on Friday, March 6 and Saturday, March 7, 2015
Haunted Files Online:
“Haunted Files Online” provides images, resources, and an active blog for further discussion and study.
Image courtesy of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Archives.