Amidst an atmosphere of increasing hostility towards migrants in the UK, the Global Development Institute’s Migration, Refugees and Asylum Research Group will be hosting a teach in/out to tackle misconceptions about migration and underline its role as a social good.
Titled ‘Do You Have Questions About Migration?’, the event will take place at Manchester’s John Rylands Library on Friday, 14th November, and represents part of wider effort by the Migration Scholars Mobilize Network to defend academic freedom, speak the truth about migration, and stand in active solidarity with migrants and refugees everywhere.
As well as learning about migrants’ contributions to the City of Manchester and beyond, audience members will have a chance to share information and ask questions about current migration in the UK.
Confirmed speakers include Anandi Ramamurthy (Emeritus Professor of Media and Culture at Sheffield Hallam University), Jan Nederveen Pieterse (Distinguished Professor of Global Studies and Sociology at University of California Santa Barbara), and Tess Hartland (Research Associate with the Manchester Urban Ageing Research Group and the University of Manchester). There will also be live music from Richard Fay and Intercultural Musicking and poetry from Balraj Samrai.
What is a teach in/out?
The “teach in” originated in the 1960s in response to the US war in Vietnam. Concerned university faculty sought to engage the academic community in self-education about the war upon realising that support for the war was grounded in distorted narratives and a lack of historical awareness surrounding national liberation struggles in Vietnam.
Teach ins were not designed to impart information like a traditional lecture. Rather, they provided an opportunity to learn, share, and grow with others, ultimately encouraging thousands of students and faculty to join the anti-war movement.
While the social and political landscape is very different several decades on, issues surrounding distorted reporting and the misrepresentation of basic facts remain. Politicians in the UK – including professedly left-leaning politicians – falsely argue that the nation’s social fabric is threatened by invaders from elsewhere. Meanwhile, mass detention and deportations by heavily armed men have become commonplace in the US – paving the way for an increasingly militarized police state.
As well as sharing information with staff and students as part of a teach in, the event will welcome members of the wider community for a broader discussion – also known as a “teach out”. The aim of the event is to attract the curious and the open-minded, providing a space for participants to foster community, hope, action, and determination to protect those under attack.
Join the conversation
Migration scholars have long studied and discussed the many ways migrants enrich the social life of cities and states, regenerate urban neighbourhoods, establish businesses and essential services, provide remittances to impoverished families, enhance cultural life, and provide skilled labour to higher education, health, and other vital industries. Now, these scholars are encouraging everyone to join this conversation, learn more about migration, and ensure vital knowledge is available to all, thereby turning the tide on narratives that endanger the most vulnerable.
To join us, please register your attendance on Eventbrite. All welcome!
Note: This article gives the views of the author/academic featured and does not necessarily represent the views of the Global Development Institute as a whole.
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