Blog by Decolonising the Archive (DTA) and LSHTM Archives Service Team
Help us decolonise the archive and reimagine how medical histories are preserved, shared and understood.
In 2024, the Archives Service was awarded funding from The National Archive’s Research and Innovation fund to reframe access to our historic medical photograph collection.
To continue our efforts to address the colonial legacies of our collections we have partnered with Decolonising the Archive (DTA) and will be running a series of events in the Autumn which DTA will facilitate.
This will feature a Webinar giving context to some of the colonial medical photographs held in LSHTM’s archive followed by two in-person workshops allowing participants to have the option to be guided on the viewings using DTA’s trauma-informed approach alongside speaking to our current experts in the field. This will support participants to respond to the photographs as a community (this section is optional), reflecting on whether, how and why they ought to be preserved and accessed.
Participants will then be invited to a final webinar to discuss responses, agree on processes going forward and explore what methods ought to be used to continue to confront historic violence in the archives.
For too long archives have been shaped by a colonial gaze- misrepresenting lives, cultures and histories. We invite you- especially from communities featured in our collections- to help us inform the record and co-create better futures for our shared heritage.
If you are interested in attending, or indeed contributing please fill out this short form, email us, or watch this space.
Expression of Interest form: Expression of Interest – Fill out form
