Decolonising the museum: Cité Nationale de l’Histoire de l’Immigration

The collections, exhibiting techniques and events offered at France’s national museum of immigration history are explored through this critical review of Cité Nationale de l’Histoire de l’Immigration (CNHI) at the Palais de la Porte Dorée in Paris. The case study considers the extent to which one of the capital’s newest museums has successfully and sensitively aligned the colonialist architecture of its building – originally constructed for the 1931 World’s Fair – with twenty-first century, postcolonial perspectives on the decolonisation of cultural spaces, and pluralisation of curatorial narratives, to better reflect the histories and lived experiences of diverse audiences.