Womens History Month: An oral histories exhibition

Priscilla Dujon with her children in Bethnal Green, 1968. Pic: Priscilla Dujon

A photo of a Bethnal Green family from the Tower Hamlets archives. Pic: Priscilla Dujon

A new exhibition exploring the oral histories of black and Asian woman in Tower Hamlets will be unveiled today as part of Women’s History Month.

‘Where I Belong’ is being hosted by Tower Hamlets council in association with Black Women’s Health & Family Support, BYM Whitechapel Women’s Centre and the Zaccheus Project and will be on show until June 12.

Mayor of Tower Hamlets, Lutfur Rahman, who is attending the event said: “This is a fascinating exhibition telling women’s stories in their own words. Women from a variety of backgrounds have participated and we are grateful to them and the community groups who have supported the project.”

The exhibition will focus on telling the missing stories of women’s lives in the borough belonging to ethnic minority groups, aiming to address a gap in historical record and featuring interviews with local women about their lives and experiences.

The interviews, recorded over the course of a year by Majeda Begum,  will be displayed in audio-visual and written form alongside portraits taken by photographer Sarah Ainslie and contextual archival images from the library’s collections.

The launch kicks off at 2pm at Tower Hamlets Local History Library and Archives on Bancroft Road today and includes knitting, sewing, and henna painting activities as well as a discussion chaired by university lecturer Suzanne Scafe who co-wrote the influential book on Black women’s history, ‘The Heart of the Race’.

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