Archives and the Politics of History and Memory

How does an archive become an archive?

How does agency and power operate in the archive?

How do historians of class, gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity and disability negotiate the archival record in relation to cultural politics today?

What role do archives play in the creation and contesting of cultural memory?

What strategies are available for deciphering the archive, reading with and against the grain?

How should historians respond to the 'silence' of the archives?

How might the creation of new archives contribute to the production of radical histories and/or popular memories?

Do personal papers and community archives offer an intimate antidote to absences in the institutional archives?

To what extent, and in what ways, has the digital revolution transformed the democratic potential of archives and their contribution to historical understanding?

What are the political and ethical dilemmas faced by archivists in conflict zones, and how might these best be addressed?

Speakers

• Sally Alexander, Emeritus Professor of Modern History, Goldsmiths, University of London and Founding Editor of History Workshop Journal
• Beverley Butler, Lecturer in Museum Studies and Cultural Heritage, Institute of Archaeology, University College London
• Red Chidgey (DIY feminist historian, blogger and co-founder of the transnational digital archive and community resource, www.grassrootsfeminism.net
• Anna Davin, Founding Editor of the History Workshop Journal
• Judith Garfield, Executive Director of Eastside Community Heritage in East London
• Nick Mansfield, Senior Research Fellow in History at the University of Central Lancashire, formerly Director of the People's History Museum, Manchester
• Anita Rupprecht, Senior Lecturer in Cultural History, School of Humanities, University of Brighton

View the symposium programme