Last stop for touring exhibition: Manchester
The last stop for the touring exhibition was Manchester’s Central Library where it was shown from 3 October to 8 November 2024 within the Manchester Histories Hub section of the Library. The exhibition was accompanied by a display about the Greater Manchester section of the project, including a set of panels illustrating the stories produced by the adult volunteer researchers from Year 1 of the project and an additional panel by pupils and staff from The Derby High School in Bury dedicated to the stories which they researched. More information about this exhibition can be found at https://crossingfootprints.com/migration-stories-exhibition/.
The exhibition was hosted by Manchester Histories and also supported by Fair Futures CIC who delivered the school workshops in Bury. The Central Library is generally known to be the busiest library in the UK, with around 2 million visitors per year. The number accessing the area around the Manchester Histories Hub during the 5 week exhibition period is estimated at approx. 19,000.
There was Preview Launch for the exhibition on Wednesday 2 October, 4pm to 7pm. This was an informal opportunity to hear about the Migration Stories North West project and to chat with people who were involved in the research. Kooj Chuhan from Crossing Footprints and Alison Lloyd Williams from Global Link gave a brief talk and were on hand to discuss any aspects of the work and the contexts in which it was produced.
Crossing Footprints also organised a well attended Special Event: ‘Migration, Identity, History’ on Wednesday 16 October, 5.30pm – 7pm. With this leg of the Migration Stories North West exhibition taking place during Black History Month, this event explored not only the nature of migrant identity throughout British history but also the intersections between the history of migration and issues at the forefront of Black history. A panel of speakers included Washington Alcott, Louise Wong, Yichao Shi, Alison Fisher and Kooj Chuhan. The event also featured a live music performance by the amazing Jim Parris. Full details at https://crossingfootprints.com/migration-identity-history/.