Território a ser explorado: uma proposta para um guia para os museus da Baixada Fluminense

Abstract

Often remembered only as a peripheral and violent place, the Baixada Fluminense has, however, a rich historical past and great cultural diversity. But this is not properly known and valued, either by the public authorities or by the local population, since the region suffers from the lack of policies to preserve its historical and cultural heritage, often in shambles or on the verge of disappearing, and with the lack of cultural facilities that represent, preserve, reflect and disseminate this heritage. A need exists, but it’s not an absence of it. Through research in official publications, websites and social networks we managed to raise more than three dozen museological institutions, the focus of this work, of varying types, existing in the thirteen municipalities that belong to this territory. These institutions can and should act as poles of social transformation, democratization and inclusion, having the local cultural heritage as reference, according to the new museological conceptions. Therefore, after analyzing the trajectory of museums in the world and in Brazil, the historical development of the region and the relations between Museum, Education, History, and believing in the potential of local museums for teaching history, we propose the elaboration of a guide with teachers as the preferred target audience, so that they are aware of, value and plan educational activities in or with these places, aiming not only to study the region's past, but to reflect it on the present and in the possibilities for changes to its future.