Stand up and be counted - Ulster's suffragettes

Another great initiative from PRONI (www.proni.gov.uk) in Belfast takes place next week with the online launch of a new resources looking at women's suffrage in Northern Ireland - the following is he news announcement for those wishing to attend:

Stand Up and Be Counted! An online resource of the theme of suffrage 

The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) invites you to the launch of our new online resource, entitled Stand Up and Be Counted!, which uses archives to explore issues around suffrage, gender and democracy. The launch, which will take place on Monday 28th September, will be followed by a practical workshop demonstrating how the resource can be used in the community.

This free event is aimed at community group members and leaders, youth workers, educationalists, cultural and good relations staff, or anyone wishing to explore Decade of Centenaries (1912-1922) topics or issues around suffrage and democracy.

1.30pm – Launch of Stand Up and Be Counted! online resource

2.00 – 4.00pm – Workshop

1.30pm: Launch of Stand Up and Be Counted! online resource Archives have a key role to play in helping communities and individuals explore our shared history. The online resource pack is aimed at anyone with an interest archives, suffrage or the wider Decade of Centenaries. The aim of the resource is to exemplify how archives not only help us explore the past, but can also inform and inspire debate around more contemporary issues. The resource pack will provide online access to original PRONI archives (via scanned copies) which can be downloaded and used to explore themes relating to Decade of Centenaries within the local community. The resource also includes contextual information and suggestions for workshop exercises. The resource will be available on the PRONI website www.proni.gov.uk

2.00 - 4.00pm: Cafe-conversations style workshop During this practical session, participants will have a chance to explore primary sources – such as letters, documents and images - created by a range of individuals and organisations involved in shaping our past.

You don’t need to be a history expert – you just need to be curious! You will use evidence from the archives to consider how different backgrounds and ideologies – unionist and nationalist, labour and class, the suffragette movement – may have influenced opinions on suffrage. You will then go on to discuss how circumstances have changed over time, and consider how the successes and challenges of the past can inform and engage people in debate about present day topical issues.

Booking Admission is free, however booking for the workshop is essential.

To reserve a place, contact PRONI Email: proni@dcalni.gov.uk Tel: (+44) 028 9053 4800 Public Record Office of Northern Ireland PRONI, 2 Titanic Boulevard, Belfast, BT3 9HQ

COMMENT: I discussed women's suffrage in a talk in Toronto last Friday on the Decade of Remembrance - it is as much a part of the revolutionary proceedings between 1912 and 1922 as any other event, so I'm very much looking forward to this.  For those interested, another very useful resource online is a website and free downloadable ebook on the topic from the Glenravel Family History group at http://www.belfastsuffragettes.com - thoroughly recommended.

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including my recently released Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html. My Pinterest account is at https://www.pinterest.com/chrismpaton/.