STRIKE AT IMPERIAL - 2019 LEICESTER EXHIBITION REMEMBERS 45th ANNIVERSARY OF STRIKE

www.strikeatimperial.net

Researching, Co-Curating, & Engaging The Local Community

My 2014 short story, ‘An Imperial Typewriter’, and the historical research I undertook in order to write it was the inspiration behind this 2019 exhibition at Newarke House Museum. I worked with Marc Boothe, founder of B3 Media, on the project’s development and subsequently applied for and won an ACE-funded Research & Development grant for a further Archival and Oral History Project entitled Typewritten Tales. For Typewritten Tales, I researched in six archives across the country and conducted oral history interviews with former strikers and non-strikers alike, with a focus on Leicestershire’s BAME elder communities. This research meant Marc Boothe and I were in a good position to apply for and win a Heritage Lottery Fund Grant for an exhibition at Newarke House Museum in Leicester.

I was Lead Researcher, Writer, and Co-Curator on the project. Marc Boothe of B3 Media co-curated and produced the exhibition with a carefully selected team. Our local partners included The Stephen Lawrence Centre, De Montfort University, The University of Leicester, and more. The exhibition was a huge success, beloved by the local community and beyond.

Conducting Interviews and Hosting Events

In addition to former factory worker interviews, I spoke to intellectuals and thinkers like Tariq Ali, Avtar Brah, Amrit Wilson, Dr. Carlton Howson, Sujata Aurora, and Yuri Prasad (who advised on the project). Events I hosted with B3 Media included the highly successful and sold-out “Women’s Resistance: Voice, Agency, and Protest” which featured Dr. Leah Bassel, Amrit Wilson, Sujata Aurora and myself in conversation with a vibrant activist audience in Leicester.

Oral Historian and Archival Researcher

A large component of this exhibition was based on research I conducted during the course of my Arts Council Research and Development Grant, Typewritten Tales. I conducted twenty or so audio recordings with former factory workers, strikers and non-strikers alike, as well as community elders who witnessed the strike unfold. I also engaged in-depth archival research in six archives across the UK. I worked with Marc Boothe and B3 Media to convert this research into a Heritage Lottery Fund Grant application, after which Marc, his team, and I co-created a lively, engaging, and powerful exhibition for the local community and beyond.