Second in the workshop series hosted by the University of Stirling Archives and the Division of History, Heritage and Politics

Following a very successful first workshop in June, the University of Stirling Archives and Division of History, Heritage and Politics would like to invite you to continue to explore the interconnections between liberation struggles/colonial governments across Southern and Central Africa. We heard from a wide range of projects in June which explored relations between nationalist groups in Malawi and Rhodesia, South Africa’s impact on the wider Southern African region, mercenary involvement in the Rhodesian war of independence and a biography of Peter Mackay to name but a few. Now we would love to expand on the coverage of the first workshop.

The theme of this event is taken from the Archive's collection on Peter Mackay which contains a comprehensive record of Mackay’s journalism, political activism, travel, photography and charitable work. It is a unique collection in part because of the large number of topics it deals with and its vast geographical coverage across Southern and Central Africa. The collection highlights in particular the many interconnections between the various freedom, liberation, anti-settler and pro-democracy struggles in Southern and Central Africa between the 1950s and the 1990s which more often than not get obscured by historical narratives that continue to focus mostly on country specific struggles and processes. The Mackay Archive documents some of these untold and unexplored interconnections in minute detail, including Mackay’s involvement in the ‘Freedom Road’ that ran between Francistown and Lusaka.

To celebrate this collection as well as promote academic research we hereby invite proposals for presentations for the second workshop that will be held on 16th November 2019. Presentations should run for a maximum of 20 minutes and must explore interconnections between the various liberation struggles (including both anti-colonial and anti-settler movements, and post-colonial struggles for democracy) in Southern and Central Africa from the c.1950s - c.1990s. Please submit proposed titles and abstracts of up to 300 words to Rosie Al-Mulla at [email protected] by 8th November 2019. All submissions are welcome, including works-in-progress, but we would particularly encourage participation by graduate students presenting their research.

You can also register to attend the event here. The final programme and room will be announced. Please feel free to share the event with anyone you think will find it of interest.

There is no charge for attendance of the workshop. We gratefully acknowledge funding from the Division of History, Heritage and Politics to cover catering costs.

We are unable to offer assistance with travel costs to the University of Stirling but owing to the generosity of the Stirling Fund we are able to offer accommodation to a limited number of participants. Please contact the organisers by 25th October if you require accommodation in Stirling.

Organisers: