Applied Anthropologist Profile: Dr. Chelsea Blackmore, Senior Archaeologist at Albion Environmental Inc. & Queer Theorist

Dr. Chelsea Blackmore (Source: Archaeological Institute of America, as provided by Blackmore)

Today’s blog post will discuss the significant work of Dr. Chelsea Blackmore, Senior Archaeologist at Albion Environmental Inc.  She also has been an outspoken advocate of queer theory in archaeological theory and practice.  In this post you will learn how it is that she came to be such an advocate and what her work has done to make archaeology a more equitable place and space for both past and present people.

 

Dr. Chelsea Blackmore came out as queer when she was 29 years old.  Because she came out at that age, when she was a graduate student transitioning into the professional realm of the academy, she had concerns related to herself but also in her own research and professional settings she was and would be occupying.  Realizing that there were too few resources for queer archaeological scholars and almost no discussion of queer theory or identities in research she embarked on her journey to change both. It became her mission to ensure that upcoming scholars had resources, and that queer theory and identities were understood, legitimized, and studied within archaeological contexts.

 

She quickly began talking with her peers and professors about the issues she was seeing, both within archaeological study and as a queer archaeologist.  She realized and recognized that in archaeological theory the ideas of gender and sexuality are very rarely interrogated.  As a graduate student she noted that it was (and still is to this day among many scholars) automatically assumed that when looking at gender and sexuality that cisgender and heterosexuality are the norms, intentionally or unintentionally ignoring the possibilities and evidence of third genders and the spectrum of sexual identities.  Some of the lack of discussion on these topics was due to fear of retribution for considering these ideas, while others just simply did not consider these possibilities.  Ultimately, by not considering these options among past people contemporary archaeologists were and are limiting their understanding of the past.  Also, by defaulting to the modern-day standards of what is considered normal minorities living in the present are further obscured and pushed back into the closet because they are forced to feel valueless.

 

She also opened discussion about how queer anthropologists and archaeologist are treated, and how that treatment affects their ability to be successful within the discipline.  This includes but is not limited to access to field sites (based on laws of the country or the perceptions of the field supervisors), treatment while out in the field, ability to collaborate in research and/or publish, etc.  By engaging in these discussions she has made it easier for up and coming queer archaeologists to feel safer in the field and to have the challenges that they currently and will face acknowledged and addressed in appropriate ways. 

 

Blackmore took this and other social justice approaches to the classroom, actively integrating them into her teaching practices.  She was credited by her students and her peers for creating and fostering an open and safe learning environment for all students while she was an Assistant Professor at the University of California-Santa Cruz.  She ultimately left that position in 2019 to pursue a career as the Senior Archaeologist at Albion Environmental Inc.  This is a female owned cultural resources management firm based out of California.  Even though she has left the academy her work and efforts remain instrumental in changing the dialogues within archaeological study and practice, creating opportunities to better understand the past and provide greater access to all archaeologists today.

 

Bibliography

Archaeological Institute of America. "Archaeologists You Should Know: Chelsea Blackmore." 2023. Archaeological Institute of America. Electronic. 10 May 2024.

Blackmore, Chelsea. "Editorial." 31 January 2018. Queer Archaeology. Electronic. 10 May 2024.

Blackmore, Chelsea, et al. "Queering Fieldwork: Difference and Identity in Archaeological Practice." 2016. Society for American Archaeology. Print. 10 May 2024.

Moodie, Megan. "Heartfelt Thanks to Chelsea Blackmore." 11 June 2019. University of California-Santa Cruz Anthropology. Electronic. 10 May 2024.