Hello,

As well as the exhibition What Does Brexit Mean to you?, Daniel (the curator) and I have put on a series of events inviting people to talk about Brexit and get different views. Amazingly The Conversation event did do that and I think people felt that they could talk and ask questions. We had 30 attend and almost 200 were on the wait list. We've found interest in the events for both Suffrage 18 and Brexit this term - given running them is a relatively new thing at the library - has been a bit over whelming at times.

The exhibition website lists the events and we've just added this one on LGBT Rights:

http://www.lse.ac.uk/library/events/lgbt/lgbt-rights-and-brexit-the-facts

This is the exhibition website:

http://www.lse.ac.uk/library/exhibitions

We are running a workshop on this issue on 6 December but it got booked up very quickly so there is clearly an appetite / need for discussion. Daniel and I were thinking of creating a toolkit or series of case studies for museums, libraries and archives and if people would be interested in this, please email me directly. It may take us a while to put together though as there is a lot of delivery this term and next.

On another, but related, note, last week we ran an event with Christine Burns on her book Trans Britain, which rather got caught with the current issues around the Gender Recognition Act. When we planned the event with our staff LGBT+ network LSE Spectrum, we (perhaps foolishly) didn't anticipate how 'live' and current the event would be. Without going into lots of detail, we had to put some measures in place due to conversations on social media to ensure free speech as we are a university setting, while also making sure the speaker and Chair felt physically safe. Personally I felt very glad that I had people on hand in LSE to advise us on this but it seems to me that if I had been at a different kind of setting I possibly wouldn't have had access to that kind of resource or experience. 

All this is to say, I'd be interested in learning more from others so would be happy to collate ideas and suggestions, as I'm sure Lesley is. Thanks for raising it.

All the best, Debbie

---

From: List for discussion of issues in museum education in the UK. <[log in to unmask]> on behalf of Lesley Walker <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: 19 October 2018 10:14:14
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Query re museums and dissent and Brexit

 

Hi Gemmers

One for a Friday morning. A year ago I posted a question asking how museums, archives, etc were tackling some of the current issues faces the U.K. and a few people responded including the LSE Library who were planning a small exhibition on Brexit. I visited this yesterday and it was good to see the documents about debate about the entry of UK into the Common Market and papers relating to both sides of the historical and current debate about Europe and our place in it. The Post it Board demonstrated the polarization of the debate. But I was the only person looking at the exhibition. I also visited Ian Hislop’s I Object at the BM last week which was quite crowded and he included something quite subversive in the section on subversion which delighted me! There was also an opportunity to express opinions about something visitors felt strongly about and it certainly got people engaged. I enjoyed the exhibition but I wanted more connection with now - it was still being explored in very safe historical contexts.

I am asking again if museums etc are tackling these issues in the light of present events? Or are they using examples of historical dissent eg Peterloo, Votes for Women, etc as safe context for dissent without moving into the present or are museums etc avoiding the whole Brexit area and its fallout - polarisation and dissent, immigration debates etc etc? Are museums etc talking anything about our historic and current relationship with Europe outside of WW1? To what extent is the idea of identity and place tied up with all of this? Is there a way museums are exploring these issues with their communities to foster some common ground or is it just impossible given the polarisation? 

Would be very interested in examples or ideas.

Lesley 

Dr Lesley Walker

Heritage Consultant

[log in to unmask]

+44 (0)7748500933

+61 (0)484897685

Blog  https://lesleybw.wordpress.com

Sent from my iPad

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + GEM list: Contact the list owner for assistance at [log in to unmask] Anyone can join for free at any time by sending this message to [log in to unmask]: Join GEM Firstname Secondname Include only the text above, without email signature etc. The title of the email doesn’t matter. Send it to [log in to unmask] If you are going on holiday or have an out of office message for some other reason, you can send this message: Set GEM nomail When you get back: Set GEM mail You don’t 'miss' any messages by doing this as they are all available via main GEM list web page as above. Finally, if you need to change your email address, but stay subscribed to GEM, just send your new email address like this: CHANGE GEM [log in to unmask] + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + GEM list: Contact the list owner for assistance at [log in to unmask] Anyone can join for free at any time by sending this message to [log in to unmask]: Join GEM Firstname Secondname Include only the text above, without email signature etc. The title of the email doesn’t matter. Send it to [log in to unmask] If you are going on holiday or have an out of office message for some other reason, you can send this message: Set GEM nomail When you get back: Set GEM mail You don’t 'miss' any messages by doing this as they are all available via main GEM list web page as above. Finally, if you need to change your email address, but stay subscribed to GEM, just send your new email address like this: CHANGE GEM [log in to unmask] + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +