Dark Tourism in the Global South

Dark tourism refers to travel to sites that are associated with death, disaster or atrocity. Research on dark tourism has a strong Global North focus, exploring tourism sites in Europe and America. To date, most of the dark tourism research in Australia has focused upon northern narratives of crime and crime control within prison or penal tourism. The reality is that Australia has numerous dark tourism sites beyond penal and convict museums, including sites (or representations within museums) of colonial violence that also highlight histories of crime and crime control. Despite the abundance of dark tourism locations in Australia, the narrative presented at such sites still favours a ‘northern’ perspective, often silencing the experiences and perspectives of Aboriginal Australians and, instead, focusing on the role of Australia as an extension of the British Empire and law.

Convict sites, prison museums and memorials to colonial violence convey the social significance of various stages of Australia’s history and, importantly, the cultural, social and political shifts in ideology over time. Dark tourism can offer communities the opportunity to ‘tell their story’, as well as empower those voices that have previously been marginalised and suppressed. Expanding on the important work of previous scholars, this chapter explores how dark tourism destinations within Australia reinforce imperial British and European notions of crime and crime control to tourists through their chosen narratives and exhibits.