On Thursday April 7th, I had the pleasure of presenting a paper at the Socio-Legal Studies Association Conference at Lancaster University with a fascinating panel of speakers. Professor David Sugarman discussed his work on the life of Alfred William Brian Simpson QC, a British legal historian; and Dr Jessie Hohmann explored the notion of writing the history of objects in international law. I spoke about my current doctoral research on the work and lives of court clerks in Crown Courts in collaboration with the Legal Biography Project at the London School of Economics (LSE) and National Life Stories at the British Library. It is very exciting to be engaged in a new field of research, and extend the boundaries of the traditional approach to legal life writing which has tended to document the lives of the elite, particularly white male judges and barristers. The Legal Biography Project at the LSE is specifically interested in marginalised voices in the world of law, and discovering more about the myriad of ways in which the law is lived and experienced.
0 Comments
This month, our performance theme is - Who's Leading London? In the run up to the mayoral elections we invite you to share your stories about what it is like for you to live in London. What are your personal experiences of wider social issues such as housing, transport and health services, and the upcoming referendum about staying in or leaving the European Union? How do you feel about the choices our leaders are making? What changes would you like to see?
Come and discuss you concerns and hopes with us through the form of improvisational theatre. When: Thursday April 28th, 2016. 7-9pm Where: Clean Break, 2 Patshull Road, London, NW5 2LB Come and join us in celebration of International Women’s Day. We will spontaneously perform stories from the audience on the theme: Women on the edge of...
What are we on the edge of? Discovering new frontiers? Fresh understandings? What are our limits and boundaries? And what lies beyond them? Come and join us and share your stories. Men are very welcome too. When: Thursday, 17 March 2016 from 19:00 to 21:00 Where: 2 Patshull Road, NW5 2LB London www.londonplayback.co.uk I am looking very forward to speaking about my research alongside colleagues at the British Library, as part of the upcoming British Library PhD Research Spring Symposium: Global Voices in the Archive. Past and present British Library PhD students will explore new research drawing on the British Library’s archives and collections. I will speak about the process of creating and depositing a life history archive at the British Library. Speakers will explore the theme of ‘translation’ – both in a literal sense, investigating the hidden lives and work of translators and interpreters as revealed in the archive, and more broadly in terms of how languages, values, beliefs, histories and narratives are communicated and understood within, between, and across different cultures and contexts. The keynote speaker is Dr Tom Overton, addressing the theme of migration in the archive as explored in the first chapter of his forthcoming book, The Good Archivist. Currently Writer in Residence at Jerwood Visual Arts, Tom completed a British Library/King’s College London collaborative PhD on the writer, critic and painter John Berger in 2014. Subsequent panels, chaired by British Library curators, will feature collaborative PhD students at various stages of their research at the Library, as well as early-career postdoctoral researchers. The event will take place on March 21, 2016, 10:00 - 17:30, at The British Library Conference Centre, 96 Euston Road, London, NW1 2DB. For further details and to book a place to join us, click here. Institutional Memory Project: Remembering the University of the Arts, London: How did we get here?3/4/2016 I am working as an oral historian with the University of the Arts, London (UAL), conducting a series of film interviews to document the Institution’s history. The first interview was with Neil Fletcher who was a key player in the establishment of the London Institute, which became the University of the Arts, London in 2003. Fletcher gave a fascinating account of his involvement in the radical merger of seven independent art colleges across London in 1985 under the umbrella of the London Institute in the face of fierce opposition. He discussed the London Institute’s initial vision, the development of the Institute, its importance in his own life, and his pride in having played a part in the success of the University of Arts, London today. Last night, at St Margaret's Girls School we explored the theme of beauty. I told a traditional Russian folktale about a painting competition that prompted discussion and questions such as - What is beauty? Who defines beauty? Do different cultures have different ideals and images of beauty? Then I guided students between 13-18 years old through a creative process of identifying beautiful moments they have experienced, and bringing them to life through theatrical storytelling. It was an inspiring, joyful evening as students told their stories to the group and appreciated beauty in their lives.
Tonight, London Playback Theatre performed at the House of Commons, and spontaneously enacted personal stories shared by audience members on the theme of austerity and social justice, and more specifically the way in which government cuts to public services are drastically affecting peoples everyday lives. We are hosting another event for more stories that speak to this theme to be told and heard.
Join us on Thursday 18th February, 7.30-9.30pm at Clean Break, 2 Patshull Road, Camden, London. The House of Commons event was held in collaboration with GlobalNet21, a leading forum in the UK for discussing the major issues in the 21st Century. The 7th annual Experiencing the Law conference, held on December 10 at Kings College, London addressed the topical issue - “Asylum Seekers, Migrants, Refugees and the Challenge of Human Rights.” Conference highlights included presentations by Helen Nianias, Rosie Brennan, Gauri Raje and Lesley Abdela who discussed their direct involvement and hands on work with refugees and asylum seekers. They each sensitively and passionately gave voice to the often neglected and untold personal stories of people who have sought refuge and asylum.
Freelance journalist, Helen Nianias, offered a snapshot of her recent visit to a refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesbos, managed by the International Rescue Committee. Nianias described the stench, unhygenic conditions and endless boredom endured by people living in the camp. She recounted stories of Syrian pharmacists and engineers who didn’t want to join Assad’s army and felt they had no choice other than to leave Syria. Nianias relayed the plight of young Afghan men who suffered at the hands of both the Taliban and ISIS in their home town, and planned to walk from Athens to Sweden upon being released from the refugee camp. Nianias posed the question: ‘How can we make British and European people engage and care about this human suffering?’ Rosie Brennan is a solicitor, Senior Lecturer in the Law School at Plymouth University, and Director of the Law Clinic, which offers a range of free legal services including advice for refugees. Brennan discussed the substantive interview that is a crucial part of registering an asylum claim. She argued that the asylum interview is a potential opportunity for refugees to speak about all they have been through and survived, yet often they are partially heard and misunderstood. Therefore the manner in which the asylum interview is conducted is fundamental and should be conducive to helping people tell their stories. Brennan pointed out that many interviewees are traumatised, exhausted and vulnerable. They may also be afraid of disclosing information that could jeopardise the safety of family members who have remained in their home country. Brennan advocated training officers who conduct asylum interviews with the vital skills and qualities of compassion and sensitivity, as well as the provision of appropriate interpreters who are able to converse fluently with interviewees. Brennan also highlighted some of the legal obstacles and painstaking struggles people undergo in the attempt to reunite their fractured families. Storyteller and anthropologist, Gauri Raje, outlined the storytelling courses she facilitates with groups of refugees and asylum seekers at immigration removal centres, or detention centres. Raje draws on traditional folktales, wonder tales and myths to encourage an exploration of human archetypes and to invite dialogue amongst group participants, particularly between people from different cultures and nationalities in detention centres. Raje described working with a women’s refugee collective, formed of women who had been raped. This group of women specifically requested to work with a storyteller to help them reflect on what had happened to them with greater distance and a new perspective. Raje elaborated on her storytelling approach and the core components of listening and witnessing, whereby group participants create a respectful community in which their experiences can be safely told and heard. Raje emphasised that witnessing involves more than focussing on stories of pain and suffering. An integral part of witnessing people’s stories is recognising and honouring each individual’s resilience and the fact that they have survived. Raje also contended that in order to remain within the Shengen borders, refugees are required to tell certain types of stories to the authorities about why they were compelled to leave their countries. Furthermore, through this storytelling process refugees are in danger of constructing new and often limited identities. Raje explained that when a refugee arrives within the Shengen borders they must present their case and tell a credible, believable story which includes their name, age, the country they come from, and the reason they left. The story revolves around flight, trauma and suffering, and they make an appeal for help and asylum. Raje claimed that a person’s life story is re-framed and severed within this partial, narrow story that becomes concretised through many re-tellings. Such narratives are closed narratives with a beginning, middle and end, and taken out of the larger and richer context of a person’s whole life experience which continues, is more open ended and has future possibilities. Raje warned of potentially damaging effects if a person’s story of flight and seeking refuge becomes the overriding and fixed life story, when in actuality this story is part of (albeit an often harrowing and dislocating part) of one’s broader and multi-faceted life experience. Senior Partner in Eyecatcher Associates, Lesley Abdela, has worked in over 40 post-conflict and post-disaster countries in the field of peace-building and post-conflict reconstruction, human rights, women’s rights and democratic empowerment. Abdela discussed the impact of war on women and girls with reference to her work in Kosovo, Nepal, Afghanistan and Indonesia. Abdela suggested various practical actions that can be taken to help protect women affected by war and to maintain their dignity. Examples of such ‘do-ables’, as she called them, include providing female interpreters for women who have been trafficked or abused and don’t want to speak to men, and providing basic and essential items such as clean underwear and sanitary pads. Abdela cited the ‘Bras for Bosnia’ campaign which was created by a fashion magazine and encouraged women to buy underwear for women caught in war. Other straightforward and concrete strategies Abdela mentioned that would help to reduce the risk of rape in refugee camps include ensuring that women distribute food to women so that it is less likely they will be raped in exchange for food, and not placing single women in bright orange tents which flags up that they are on their own (which was a situation that she witnessed). Abdela reflected that after armed conflict men who are wounded in war are often accorded dignity and respect, revered as heroes, and have statues built in their honour. In contrast, in many countries, women who have been raped in war are often punished and made to feel that they have brought shame upon their families. Abdela stated that this misguided perception and practice of blaming women is one of the most grievous human rights issues in war. She urged that perceptions and attitudes can be changed and work must be done in order that women who are raped in war are recognised as having been wounded, and need to be treated with dignity and respect. Further stimulating presentations were given by Bobby Duffy, Nirmala Pillay, and Eric Heinze who presented their research on immigration related issues. Managing Director of the Ipsos MORI Social Research Institute and Global Director of Ipsos Social Research Institute, Bobby Duffy, revealed recent research concerning public perceptions of immigrants. One example is the overestimation of the number of immigrants entering the UK which tends to exacerbate concern. Duffy pointed out the enormous impact of the media, particularly tabloid newspapers such as The Daily Express, Daily Mail and The Sun, which feed on fear and worry. Duffy also mentioned that the position of Britain within the European Union and the upcoming referendum has become fused with immigration related anxiety, and is posited as the main reason for British people wanting to leave the European Union. Researcher in the School of Law at Liverpool John Moore’s University with teaching interests in the areas of public law especially human rights, international law, jurisprudence and legal theory, Dr Nirmala Pillay asserted that International Human Rights Law is inadequate to meet the challenge of displaced people in the twenty first century. Pillay noted that the causes for the refugee crisis are both political and due to natural disasters, and the current scale of global forced displacement is unprecedented. Pillay analysed why there has been no coordinated European response to refugees, the difficulties associated with the Schengen agreement, and why people in need of safety and protection are being abandoned. Pillay concluded that short term reactive measures to emergency situations, (particularly in the run up to elections) are not ultimately effective, and a far ranging and cohesive response is required to meet this long term and complex crisis. Professor of Law and Humanities at Queen Mary, University of London, Eric Heinze, argued that fair and responsible refugee and asylum policies are now of urgent importance, yet he questioned whether such policies can or should include curbs on speech and whether other responses may be more effective. Heinze suggested that the typical starting point and conventional approach to the hate speech/freedom of speech debate, namely, how and when hate speech should be restricted, is not a useful framework. He explained that in Western longstanding, stable and prosperous democracies since the 1960s there has been no causal link between hate speech and harm. However there is a causal link between hate speech and harm in countries outside these stable democracies. Heinze proposed that within stable democracies the state rigorously enforces anti-discrimination and education programmmes that actively promote civic values such as pluralism and diversity. He discussed gay marriage as an example to demonstrate the way in which states have intervened to enable new dialogues and possibilities. Heinze’s argument is developed further in his forthcoming book, Hate Speech and Democratic Citizenship (2016). A major theme underscoring all the presentations at the 7th annual Experiencing the Law conference, “Asylum Seekers, Migrants, Refugees and the Challenge of Human Rights” was a clear call for a humane and compassionate response to people who are currently fleeing persecution and in urgent need of safety, shelter, and care. This Autumn, I’m delighted to be teaching a Literature course in two East London schools with The Brilliant Club. Year six students explore different types of literature from different periods of history with a particular focus on how writers depict the natural world, as well as reflect on their own relationships to natural and man made environments. Each week students offer fresh and insightful observations and raise challenging questions, and it is a privilege to be working with them. The Brilliant Club is an award winning non-profit organisation that places doctoral and post doctoral researchers in primary and secondary schools throughout the country. A primary aim of The Brilliant Club is to assist outstanding students to develop the knowledge, skills and ambition to secure places at top universities.
In this month’s storytelling performance and workshop at St Margaret’s Girls School, we explored a rich traditional story called The Legacy Necklace. Students between 14-18 years old reflected on their own legacies - the values, qualities and influences they feel have been passed on to them from their parents and grandparents. They envisioned and created their own legacy necklaces - the legacies they would like to grow into. It was an inspiring and thought-provoking evening, and I am looking very forward to returning to St Margaret’s in January 2016 with a new story to share and learn from.
|
Archives
November 2023
|