Over the last few years, we have come face to face with our difficult past. From anti-imperialist sentiments such as the Rhodes Must Fall campaign to the Brexit debate, and the removal of Confederate monuments in America that lead to the ‘Unite the Right’ rally in Charlottesville, Virginia that left one dead and many others injured at the hands of White Nationalists. These are just a few examples of how the darker side of our history has been confronted and the intense debates that they have sparked, using various understandings and interpretations of the histories. The Difficult Heritage conference will be held at the historic Bar Convent, located just outside York’s historic Micklegate Bar.
This conference aims to bring together interdisciplinary researchers, practitioners, early career researchers, and other interested persons to create dialogue around the questions:
- How are difficult histories researched, presented and disseminated, to both specialist and non-specialist audiences?
- What are the ethical considerations that must be taken into account when dealing with these difficult histories?
- Why is it important that these difficult histories are told?
We are very excited to have Dr. Jessica Moody (University of Bristol) as our keynote speaker for the event. Dr. Moody’s research is concerned with how people engage with the past, through collective memory, public history, and heritage. She is specifically interested in the representation of, and engagement with, difficult and dissonant pasts, especially those concerning contested racial histories, transatlantic slavery, and warfare.
The Difficult Heritage 2018 conference is organised by Lucie Wade, Rhiannon, and Dan Johnson, with funding from the Heritage Consortium.
Difficult Heritage: Making Sense of Uncomfortable Histories 