Bristol Radical History Group in NYC Nov 12-15th
Posted November 12, 2009 by k_c_ in Art & Politics
Some old English comrades, a few I met in Mexico over 8 years ago, are in NYC giving some presentations on the Bristol Radical History Group, a project they've been doing since 2006:
The 'History Workshop' movement was founded in 1966 in Ruskin College, Oxford, U.K. by the Marxist academic Raphael Samuel, a champion of 'history from below.' He famously defined this movement as being "the belief that history is or ought to be a collaborative enterprise, one in which the researcher, the archivist, the curator and the teacher, the 'do-it-yourself' enthusiast and the local historian, the family history societies and the individual archaeologist, should all be regarded as equally engaged."In 2006 in the U.K., Bristol Radical History Group was formed with a view opening up some of the hidden history of their home city to public scrutiny, to challenge some commonly held ideas about historical events and approach this history from 'below'. Unlike Samuel's 'History Workshop,' the group actually came 'from below' its genesis being in an expanded sports club rather than in the academy. As a result it has been able to successfully integrate both the formal lecture with street performance, the organic intellectual with the academic and engage the public in the excitement of radical history by the use of different media.
Members of Bristol Radical History Group will be outlining the influences that inspired their project from E.P.Thompson to punk rock, describing their forays into the battles over the historical representations of their city from slavery to labour history and looking to the future of radical history from 'below'. So if you want to find out what unites a 17th Century blasphemous preacher and some drunken Can-Can dancers this is the event for you.
Check out their A Short Film Of The James Nayler Commemoration for an example of the kinds of reconstructions and work they do.
The group speaks tonight
Bristol Radical History Group: Radical History ‘From Below’
at the Brecht Forum
451 West St (between Bank & Bethune St)
NYC
Friday, November 13th, 4pm,
Bristol Radical History Group - Why History Matters and Why Radical History Matters More
at 16 Beaver Group
16 Beaver Street 4th & 5th Fl
NYC
Sunday, November 15th, 7pm
Discussion: Dan Bennett “History as Inquiry and Militant Research”
at Bluestockings,
172 Allen St NYC
An afternoon/evening of lectures, presentations and discussion presented by Bristol Radical History Group (BRHG) emphasising the importance and relevance of radical history. Using a diverse series of historical case studies the speakers will demonstrate the various interventions BRHG have made into their local and national histories including:* uncovering hidden histories
* challenging established narratives
* questioning previous generations of 'radical history'
* linking new narratives and critiques with current strugglesCase studies include:
‘A Barbarous and Ungovernable People’: The Miners of Kingswood Forest: Steve Mills explains the nature of the commons and the content of ‘commoning’ by studying the English forest and its rebellious inhabitants. Focusing on Kingswood (east of Bristol) between the 17th and 19th centuries he examines the moral economy of the native colliers, their struggles against enclosure and the attempts by the authorities to pacify the area.
‘From Peterloo to Captain Swing’: Victims or Insurgents?: Roger Wilson critiques received ‘radical’ narratives of enfranchisement and the formation of Trade Unions in Britain by focusing on the hidden history of uprising and insurrection in the early 19th Century. Why have some events been ignored or denigrated and others been championed by the left and the labour movement?
‘Votes for Ladies’: The Suffragette Movement 1903-1914: An examination of the established narrative of the struggle for the enfranchisement of women. Anny Cullum critiques the composition and outlook of this iconic movement from a class perspective.
‘My Holiday Snaps’: The Indian Enclosures: Richard Grove presents an illustrated talk charting the Adivasi’s and Dalits’ struggle to protect their land from the encroachments sponsored by industry and the World Bank in a contemporary world-wide wave of enclosures.
All of these events are part of the ‘This is Forever’: From Inquiry to Refusal A Discussion Series Dedicated to Understanding the Current Composition of Political Movements and Struggles Using the Lens of Autonomist Thought.
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