Displaced Migrants: Living History. What Does Heritage Mean To You?
Element Society, a charity supporting young people and vulnerable adults in Sheffield, has received a National Lottery Heritage Fund grant of £35,600 for an exciting heritage project, Displaced Migrants: Living History.
Made possible by money raised by National Lottery players, the Displaced Migrants: Living History project gives Young People (aged 16-24) the opportunity to individually and collectively explore their own heritage and identity in workshops where they will be trained up in oral history skills. This involves the recording of the unique lived experiences, opinions and memories of people from different walks of life. Young people will learn how to use the technical equipment, interview and collect, organise, theme and present stories like social researchers. Our partners of the project – The University of Sheffield will guide us through the process. At the end of the project, we will also create a learning resource pack, which will be accessible to teachers to be used in schools.
The young people will then collect the stories of people from displaced communities in Sheffield, including refugees, asylum seekers, migrants and new arrivals to the city. Once the stories are collected, they will then be edited into audio clips and presented creatively as zines (DIY themed mini magazines), which will be shared in exhibitions and gatherings around the city, including being archived at the local history library and the University of Sheffield, too. The project is an opportunity to voice and document hidden stories, where these missing important narratives will be archived for posterity. While many people from migrant communities may have left their homelands in challenging and traumatic circumstances, they also bring with them memories which mark their dynamic culture and heritage, including music, food, dance and history. This creates a legacy for future generations of this city of sanctuary which welcomes refugees and migrants.
The project will take place over the Summer at Element Society Social Action Studios on Leopold Street. Young People who are interested in taking part, we expect to document and keep with one migrant story throughout the Summer project. We would like to ask participants to come thinking about what ‘heritage’ means to them and be willing to explore this in a peer group setting.
Element Society will cover travel expenses and provide food over the training days and we welcome interest from diverse backgrounds, and especially those who are from a Migrant background themselves.
Dates for the diary:
29th & 30th July – Oral history training days
1st – 23rd August – Recording the stories (flexible, 1-1 support) (commit to recording 1 story)
27th & 28th August – Editing and Zine making sessions
29th Aug - 21st Sept – 1-1 support
28th September – Re-grouping
October (TBC) – Exhibition, Celebration
The project will end in October in an exhibition and celebration event, where everyone who has participated can share their experiences over food, music and conversations.
We also want to hear from people from refugee, migrant, asylum seeker and new arrival communities who are willing to share their stories.
The project is supported by and working in partnership with the University of Sheffield and is funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
For further information contact Uzma Kazi (Living History Coordinator):
uzma.k@elementsociety.co.uk 0114 299 9210
Twitter: @livinghistory_elementsociety
Uzma Kazi, Living History Co-Ordinator
Uzma Kazi co-ordinates the Displaced Migrants: Living History project at Element Society. She was born and brought up in Bradford and recently moved to Sheffield as she is also currently studying on the MA Art Psychotherapy Course. Uzma is British-Muslim-South Asian with Indian heritage and grew up in corner shop life. She has trained and worked as a freelance theatre designer and visual artist; she is also a qualified youth & community worker and has worked with Young People from diverse backgrounds and settings as well as with women groups, BAME and interfaith groups, predominantly in the voluntary sector. She has been a part of active campaigns on race, faith and gender based issues using tools including art, creativity, voice, dialogue and radio to create awareness of these important and topical issues.
In 2015, Uzma travelled independently in India on a 3 month trip. In July 2018 she also did a skydive, jumping from 10,000 feet from a plane in Bridlington, raising money for Women’s Aid. Whilst she loves a thrilling challenge, Uzma also makes artwork and likes to keep her feet firmly on the ground!
Uzma Kazi, Living History Co-ordinator, Element Society 0114 299 9210 http://www.elementsociety.co.uk
Twitter: @uzma_kazi / @livinghistory_elementsociety
Uzma is available to speak to the media expertly on the following topics:
Young people
BAME women and girls’ work
Muslim faith / interfaith relations
Race inequality
Art, creativity and engagement
Keeping creative subjects within the school curriculum
Art Therapy
Mental health and accessibility, stigma
Community cohesion
Migration stories
NOTES TO EDITORS:
Element Society is a youth-led charity which has empowered over 2,400 young people to change their lives and their communities since it launched in 2013.
The charity began as a youth project working with 12 young people. It swiftly ballooned and now works with at least 500 young people each year of all abilities, backgrounds and religions.
Of the 2,400 young people the charity has worked with, 65% identified as BAME, 15% were living with SEND.
Over 160 projects have resulted, tackling issues including knife crime and child sexual exploitation.
Its young people have done over 140,000 hours of voluntary work through the National Citizen Service - worth nearly £1million to Sheffield.
The charity’s founder and CEO is Chris Hill, The charity has recently received a significant boost from the Yorkshire Building Society in providing 12,000 square feet of office space over three floors - in the centre of Sheffield at a peppercorn rent.
Element Society is based at Yorkshire House, 66 Leopold Street Sheffield S1 2GZ, the former home of the Yorkshire Building Society. The building, which overlooks the Town Hall and Peace Gardens, has four floors and is now a giant youth club and meeting space. It is set to become a hub for a host of young people’s charities.
Element Society helps young people to make a difference by:
Developing skills and capabilities
Facilitating social action and social connectivity, capturing the stories of their social heritage, creating projects around mental health, raising awareness of sexual exploitation, reducing knife crime, improving disability access, and more).
Providing support and space
Encouraging young people to use their voice for change and produce relevant interventions
Raising a positive profile of young people
Working collaboratively with partners.