Diverse city will be celebrated in national festival
EVENT WILL FOCUS ON LEICESTER’S RICH HISTORY
LEICESTER proudly holds the title of one of the most multicultural cities in the UK.
Now its history is set to be celebrated as part of a national festival next year hosted by the Institute of Historical Research (IHR) London.
Historians at De Montfort University have been chosen to host one of the events which will focus on Leicester’s history and how it became so diverse.
In 2011, the city was the first in the UK where the majority of residents identified as non-white British.
There are some 70 languages spoken in Leicester and at least 14 different faiths practiced.
Next year’s event will provide an opportunity to hear different stories of residents community groups and organisations and aims to “amplify marginalised stories, promote inclusivity and engage diverse communities”.
The festival will discuss what multiculturalism means and how it has influenced the way in which Leicester celebrates its past.
It will bring together academic historians and community history groups in partnership with the Leicester branch of the Historical Association.
Leicester’s event will be one of several, including workshops, walking tours and film screenings hosted by other organisations across the country.
Professor Elizabeth Tingle, professor of history at DMU, said: “The Leicester History Festival will address all the aims of the IHR events series but in particular it will examine the histories of subaltern groups; celebrate and promote diverse and engaged histories and historical practice as a means of community building. “In partnership with the Historical Association, it will involve diverse communities in the discussion of how history is created and understood.
“Doing so through the analytical lens of multiculturalism allows a critical exploration of a theoretical and a lived historical concept.” The IHR has provided funding towards the costs of the day-long history festival which will take place in April 2022. Professor Catherine Clarke, of the IHR, said the Our Century celebrations aimed to inspire the next generation of historians.
She added: “All events approach history in imaginative and creative ways: addressing urgent challenges, discovering or amplifying marginalised stories, promoting inclusivity, engaging diverse communities, and informing and inspiring the next generation of historians.”
There are some 70 languages spoken in Leicester and at least 14 different faiths practiced