Re/Assemble – a new exhibition celebrating LGBTQIA+ history and queer activism opens on Saturday 17 January at People’s History Museum.
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We have commissioned three brilliant, queer artists: Sarah-Joy Ford​, Yuen Fong Ling and Anna Appleby. (Click to find out more!)
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A LITTLE HISTORY
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In1988 coinciding with the height of the AIDS pandemic, less than 10% of British adults thought that same-sex relationships were ‘acceptable’. Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative government introduced Section 28 of the Local Government Act which prohibited the ‘promotion of homosexuality’ by schools and local authorities. It was time to PROTEST!
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“SHE’LL BE COMING WITH A WOMAN WHEN SHE COMES”
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“2,4,6,8 – IS THAT COPPER REALLY STRAIGHT?”
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Over 20,000 people took to Manchester’s streets, making it the biggest LGBTQIA+ demonstration in British history. This extraordinary event is the central theme of, and stimulus behind Re/Assemble.
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JOIN THE PROTEST! TO AMPLIFY QUEER VOICES: RE/ASSEMBLE NOW BECAUSE OUR HISTORY IS NOT SOMETHING REMEMBERED, IT IS STILL BEING WRITTEN.
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Manchester arts organisation IAP:MCR is currently delivering PROTEST! – Documenting Dissent – a research and creative engagement programme, generously supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund. To date IAP:MCR has gathered over 35 hours of original testimony from people who were either involved in protesting against Section 28, or who were directly affected by it.
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This testimony has inspired the exhibition Re/Assemble. Artists Anna Appleby, Sarah-Joy Ford, and Yuen Fong Ling have been commissioned to create work that responds directly to the stories collected, and these are exhibited alongside artefacts contemporaneous with the march, and banners and other materials from PHM’s collection that highlight LGBTQIA+ struggle.
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The creation and launch of Re/Assemble is both a celebration of Section 28’s revocation and a call to arms to never forget the torment and trauma it created for so many. Re/Assemble is a spotlight on this huge turning point in LGBTQIA+ history and activism.
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​ Title artwork created by Lee Baxter.
