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Reconstituting a Traumatized Community:
The German-Speaking Refugees of the 1930s and their Legacy to Britain

Tuesday 24 June 2008

An afternoon workshop and evening discussion convened by Professor 
Edward Timms, OBE, FBA, University of Sussex and organised in 
partnership with the Centre for German-Jewish Studies, University of 
Sussex

The British Academy, 10 Carlton House Terrace, London SW1

Please note our registration and seating policy for these events:
Afternoon workshop: registration is required for this workshop. Further 
details and an online booking form are available from: 
http://www.britac.ac.uk/events/2008/barge/index.html

Evening panel discussion: only workshop registrants wishing to attend 
this discussion are required to register in advance. For non-workshop 
attendees registration is not required and seating will be allocated on 
a `first come first served´ basis. Attendance is free for both events.

Afternoon workshop: 1.30pm - 6pm
This workshop provides an opportunity to reassess the legacy of the 
refugees of the 1930s, taking account of the newly created database, 
`British Archival Resources Relating to German-Speaking Refugees, 1933-
1950´ (BARGE). The database, which covers both public and private 
collections, was compiled by researchers at the University of Sussex 
Centre for German-Jewish Studies, funded by Arts and Humanities 
Research Council.

The BARGE database can be accessed on: 
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/Units/cgjs/barg/ The workshop will begin with 
short presentations by the researchers involved, including an online 
demonstration of the functions of the database. This provides access to 
a remarkable range of archival testimony, recording both liberation and 
frustration. The immigrants, although assisted by voluntary refugee 
committees, also encountered hostility and resistance, culminating in 
the trauma of internment.

The aim is to promote further research about the involvement of the 
refugees in all aspects of public life. Their achievements have in some 
respects proved exceptional, especially in the fields of natural 
science, medicine and the arts. But in construing the process as a 
success story, there is a danger that the stresses of resettlement may 
be obscured. A balanced picture will require further rigorous research, 
combining archival evidence with oral testimony.

Workshop speakers
Dr Marion Berghahn (publisher, New York and Oxford), author of the 
recently republished study Continental Britons: German-Jewish Refugees 
from Nazi Germany
Professor Gustav Born FRS (King´s College, London), author of The Born 
Family in Göttingen and Beyond
Dr Andrea Hammel (University of Sussex), Research Fellow for the BARGE 
project, author of Everyday Life as Alternative Space in Exile Writing
Ms Samira Teuteberg (University of Sussex), Resource Officer for the 
online database of Archival Resources Relating to German-Speaking 
Refugees 1933-1950
Professor Edward Timms OBE, FBA (University of Sussex), Principal 
Investigator of the BARGE project, author of `Remembering Refugees Lost 
at Sea´
Professor Paul Weindling (Oxford Brookes University), author of Nazi 
Medicine and the Nuremberg Trials and authority on Medical Refugees in 
Britain, 1930-1955

Evening panel discussion
Immigration, Diversity and Integration: past experience and present 
trends
7.00pm - 8.30pm, followed by a drinks reception
Chair:
Professor Christian Wiese, University of Sussex, author of The Life and 
Thought of Hans Jonas

This discussion, which builds on the findings of research about the 
German-speaking refugees of the 1930s, will consider whether the study 
of past experiences of immigration and integration can illuminate the 
very topical issues of cultural diversity and social cohesion in 
Britain today.

Since the early modern period, Britain has been the scene of successive 
waves of immigration by both political refugees and economic migrants. 
The process has sometimes proved traumatic for both new arrivals and 
the settled population, especially at moments of crisis, such as the 
invasion scare of May 1940 or the aftermath of the terrorist attacks of 
July 2005. However, immigration has often proved beneficial in the 
longer term by providing valuable professional skills and human 
resources, from Dutch engineers and Huguenot weavers to the Pakistani 
nurses and Polish plumbers of today.

By far the best documented instance of large-scale migration is the 
arrival during the late 1930s of an estimated 90,000 refugees from Nazi-
occupied Europe. The wealth of testimony from that period, which has 
been electronically catalogued by researchers at the University of 
Sussex, records both liberation and frustration. For the immigrants, 
assisted though they were by voluntary refugee committees, also 
encountered hostility and resistance, culminating in the trauma of 
indefinite internment without trial.

The question is whether a clear understanding of past migrations, now 
regarded as success stories, may create a more enlightened climate for 
the understanding of the current position of economic migrants and 
political asylum-seekers in multi-cultural Britain. Is large-scale 
immigration really a threat to social stability? May not ethnic 
diversity bring long-term benefits?

This discussion, initiated by the University of Sussex Centre for 
German-Jewish Studies, brings together leading academics in the field 
of migration studies with policy makers and representatives of official 
bodies. Speakers will include:

Speakers:
Ms Ayse Bircan, Advisor, Refugee Women's Association
Professor Tony Kushner, Parkes Centre, University of Southampton, 
author of Remembering Refugees: Then and Now
Professor Stephen Castles, International Migration Institute, 
University of Oxford, author of The Age of Migration: International 
Population Movements in the Modern World

Further details and an online booking form are available from: 
http://www.britac.ac.uk/events/2008/barge/index.html

A poster for your notice board can be downloaded here:
http://www.britac.ac.uk/news/bulletin/TraumaCom08_poster.pdf

For media enquiries please contact Michael Reade, External Relations, 
020 7969 5263 / [log in to unmask]


The British Academy
10 Carlton House Terrace
London SW1Y 5AH

Tel: 020 7969 5200
Fax: 020 7969 5300
Web: www.britac.ac.uk