Public History Explorers: December 2018

Public History Explorers, the monthly email newsletter of the IFPH-FIHP, features public history stories and news from around the world. This month includes news from nine countries.

This month’s news was gathered by these Public History Explorers: Dr. Caroline B. McGee, Antonio Chiaese, Jimena Perry, Juan Pablo Angarita Bernal, Hannah Hethmon

New on Bridging, the IFPH Blog:

• Call for Nomination: Delegate to the IFPH Steering Committee wanted!
• “Conversations About Studying Public History” by Marta Kopiniak
• “Un historien public à l’ère des médias sociaux” by Maxime Patte

Lithuania:

Griežtos diskusijos – tai Lietuvos viešoji nuomonė dėl antitarybinio pasipriešinimo herojaus Jono Noreiko, kaltinamo bendradarbiavimu su naciais per antrojo pasaulinio karo metu vykusį Lietuvos žydų bendruomenės holokaustą. Kaip dešiniųjų politikai, patriotinės organizacijos ir konservatyvios žiniasklaidos priemonės yra pasirengusios ginti Noreikos atminimą, Lietuvos žydų bendruomenė, viešosios istorijos organizacijos,aktyvistai ir pagrindiniai intelektualai siekia įveikti pagrindinę tendenciją Lietuvos istorijoje Antrojo pasaulinio karo metu, ypač internetu ir naujomis žiniasklaidos priemonėmis. Šis ginčas susijęs su valstybės remiamu Lietuvos gyventojų genocido ir rezistencijos tyrimo centru bei jo nacionalinės istorijos globėjo vaidmeniu, nes jie atsisakė keisti istorines išvadas apie Jono Noreiką. Skaitykite daugiau čia, čia, čia, čia (lietuvių kalba); čia, čia, čia, čia ir čia (anglų

kalba).

The public debate about the removal of street names and commemorative plaques for the anti-Soviet resistance hero Jonas Noreika, charged with Nazi collaborationism in the Holocaust of the Litvak-Jewish community during the Second World War, keeps stirring up Lithuanian public opinion. As rightwing politicians, patriotic organizations and conservative media are taking a hard stance in defence of the memory of Noreika, the Lithuanian Jewish community, public history organizations, activists and leading intellectuals are on the forefront of an international campaign that, also with the use of online platforms and new media, aims to challenge the mainstream narratives of Lithuanian recent history. Significantly, the dispute has involved the State-funded Center for the Study of the Genocide and Resistance of the Residents of Lithuania and its role of “guardian” of the recent national history, leading to an administrative trial at the Vilnius District Court against the refusal to change historical findings about Jonas Noreika. Read more here, here, here and here (in Lithuanian); here, here, here, here and here (in English).

Sweden:

Stockholmskällan innehåller mer än 30 000 bilder, kartor, dokument och litteraturtips. Antalet växer hela tiden eftersom museerna, arkiven och biblioteken som ingår i Stockholmskällan löpande publicerar mer material ur sina samlingar. Allting har valts ut för att det berättar någonting om Stockholms historia. Stockholmskällans viktigaste uppdrag är att göra Stockholms kulturarv tillgängligt för stadens skolor. Syftet är att materialet ska kunna användas i historia- och svenskundervisning, men även i andra samhällsorienterande eller estetiska ämnen. Självklart är alla som är intresserade av Stockholm eller historia i allmänhet är lika välkomna att använda Stockholmskällan.

Stockholmskällan is a website that enables you to walk in the footsteps of your predecessors, and to see the traces of history in letters, photos, police reports, maps, film, music, paintings and tips of literature – all geo-tagged and marked out on present day as well as historical maps. Stockholmskällan is a cooperation between the Stockholm City Museum, the Stockholm City Archive, the Stockholm City Library and the City of Stockholm Administration of Education. The aim is to enable digitised historical artefacts to the public in general, and especially to schools in order to make it easier to use prime sources when teaching history. At present the database holds more than 30.000 individual posts. Through Stockholmskällan these posts get visible and usable: The website has about 500,000 individual visitors annually. Explore the Website.

Northern Ireland:

A new collaborative venture by a collaborative venture by Women’s Tec and Reclaim the Agenda, this public history website is authored by Dr Margaret Ward, Dr Myrtle Hill and Lynda Walker. It aims documents women’s contributions and notable achievements in one small region of Europe and highlights the social, economic, cultural and political impact key women have had in Northern Ireland society over the last century. The narrative is supported by biographies of the women highlighted, enabling readers have a peek at their interesting and often extraordinary life stories. Learn More.

Ireland:

As part of the UK-wide Being Human Festival 2018, the Digital Repository of Ireland, in partnership with Queen’s University Belfast, is holding a unique oral history event in Belfast. It will enable pre-registered participants to share their personal reflections about social change initiatives in Northern Ireland supported by The Atlantic Philanthropies foundation between 1991 and 2016. Recorded stories will be included in DRI’s innovative open-access Atlantic Philanthropies digital archive.

This public history collaboration between historians and archivists across the island of Ireland combines new humanities research with best practice archival and digital preservation practices in order to connect human voices with archival sources. Learn More.

To Preserve and Protect: Contemporary Issues in Irish Cultural Heritage. A series of eight 20 minute podcasts by academic researchers and leaders of major Irish heritage institutions that explores questions of critical importance in Irish heritage. Opportunities and challenges of preservation and protection of Irish cultural heritage are addressed. It also provides a valuable and educational resource recorded by experts in heritage and preservation, which is publicly accessible to prompt thought and discussion. Podcasts released weekly. Learn More.  

Chile:

Personal de la Biblioteca Pública de Linares visita Biblioteca Nacional. Recientemente se llevó a cabo la visita del personal que labora en la Biblioteca Pública Municipal de Linares, a las Bibliotecas Nacional y de Santiago, conociendo de cerca la extensa labor que realizan ambas bibliotecas. La primera visita fue a la Biblioteca Nacional, que en sus más de doscientos años de historia, ofrece diversos servicios asociados a potenciar el conocimiento y contribuir al rescate de la memoria colectiva. Hoy continúa su labor ofreciéndole a Chile, y el resto del mundo, todas las herramientas que permitan conocer las riquezas de sus colecciones. Detalles.

Staff of the Public Library of Linares visit National Library and Library of Santiago. Recently, the staff of the Public Library of Linares (Chile) visited the National Library and the National Library in Santiago for an exchange of work practices. The first visit was to the National Library, which has more than 200 years of history and offers services devoted to the knowledge and rescue of the Chilean collective memory. The efforts of the directors of the library not only focus on Chile but also in promoting their services and richness of collections all over the world. Details.

Colombia:

Piden preservar esencia de Centro de Memoria Histórica en Colombia. Organizaciones e intelectuales de Colombia pidieron al gobierno y a la sociedad colombiana preservar la esencia del Centro Nacional de Memoria Histórica como patrimonio del país. Diana Sánchez, directora de la Asociación Minga, instó al cuidado de los archivos y documentos que sobre la historia de Colombia y en particular acerca del conflicto armado han sido entregados a la institución por diferentes organizaciones. Detalles.

Petition to Preserve the Essence of the National Center for Historical Memory. Several organizations and intellectuals of Colombia have asked the government to preserve the nature of the National Center for Historical Memory as part of the country´s heritage. Diana Sánchez, director of the Association Minga, demands for taking care of the archives and documents related to the history of the conflict in Colombia that are housed at the Center. Her voice sums up the preoccupation of some memories getting lost due to the institution´s change of director. Details.      

Website of the exhibition “Radio Sutatenza: a cultural revolution in the Colombian countryside (1947 – 1994),” that recreates the trajectory of an educational enterprise aimed at promoting the development of the country’s peasants. Its manager was Acción Cultural Popular (ACPO), an entity of Catholic origin whose interest was to reduce the abysmal distances between rural and urban quality of life through education in basic and distance learning. Its action system combined communication technologies with an Integral Fundamental Education (EFI) model through which it promoted campaigns to generate social changes in the field. Throughout forty years, and in alliance with public and private entities, ACPO established a network of educational media in more than nine hundred municipalities of the national territory. The exhibition was organized by Banco de la República de Colombia. Curator: Ayder Berrío, Jorge Rojas and Juan Pablo Angarita. Learn More.

40 años de historia se oirán en la Biblioteca Pública Piloto. Juan David Álvarez, encargado de la restauración, digitalización y edición del material sonoro de la Biblioteca Pública Piloto de Medellín, tiene la misión de convertir a formato digital 4.500 casetes, equivalentes a 5.000 horas de grabación, que recogen conferencias, foros, encuentros internacionales y documentos de valor histórico, recopilados por la Piloto. En el repositorio sonoro se podrá encontrar información desde 1975, año en el que se empezó a inventariar en audio las conferencias y charlas que se realizaron en esta institución hasta el año 2007, que fue la última vez en la que se registró con soporte analógico los conversatorios. Actualmente se continúan realizando estos registros, pero en formatos digitales. Detalles.

40 Years of History at the Piloto Public Library. Juan David Álvarez, in charge of restoring, digitizing, and editing audio material of the Public Library Piloto, in Medellín, has the task of converting to digital format 4.500 cassettes. The project includes recordings of conferences, presentations, international meetings, and historical documents that last 5.000 hours. In this archive, the public will find information from 1975 to 2007, when the library staff started to keep track of the events taking place at the institution. Since 2008, the recordings are being made in digital formats directly. Details.

Mexico:

La Hemeroteca Pública de Oaxaca celebra sus 46 años. La Hemeroteca Pública de Oaxaca “Néstor Sánchez Hernández” cumplió este 30 de octubre, 46 años de brindar sus servicios a las y los usuarios que diariamente asisten a consultar publicaciones, periódicos o diarios. Ante ello, la Secretaría de las Culturas y Artes de Oaxaca (Seculta), realizó una serie de actividades culturales para su conmemoración, como fue la presentación del nuevo logo oficial de la institución, una conferencia sobre Carlos María Bustamante, primer periodista oaxaqueño y concluyó con una convivencia entre las y los colaboradores de la Hemeroteca. Detalles.

The Public Newspaper and Periodical Library of Oaxaca Celebrates its 46 Years of Service. The Public Newspaper and Periodical Library of Oaxaca “Néstor Sánchez Hernández” celebrated 46 years of service the 30th of October. cumplió este 30 de octubre, 46 años de brindar sus servicios a las y los usuarios que diariamente asisten a consultar publicaciones, periódicos o diarios. During this occasion, the Oaxaca Office of Cultures and Arts carried out some activities such as the presentation of its new logo, a presentation about Carlos María Bustamante, first Oaxacan journalist, and a workshop for the library staff. Details.

Guatemala:

Memoria, verdad y justicia a través del cine. En Guatemala, las discusiones sobre las políticas de la memoria son escasas y parecieran efímeras. La narrativa del Estado ha sido una que ha priorizado el olvido, el silencio y la impunidad. Por eso celebro los ciclos en los que el festival de cine Memoria, Verdad y Justicia se ha realizado en Guatemala, porque es un aporte, desde el cine documental. Este año, la décima edición se inauguró el miércoles pasado en la capital y en los próximos meses se convertirá en un festival ambulante que concluirá en abril de 2019. Detalles.

Memory, Truth, and Justice Through Cinema. The discussions about memory policies in Guatemala are scarce and ephemeral. The state´s narrative has privileged forgetting, silence, and impunity. That is why the Cinema Festival called Memory, Truth, and Justice that presents documentaries related to this topics are so important. This year, the tenth edition of the festival started in October and will last until 2019. Details.
If you would like to contribute to the next monthly email newsletter, please email Hannah Hethmon (info@hhethmon.com).

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