OHNI 2023 Annual Conference

The Oral History Network of Ireland (OHNI) will hold its 2023 annual conference in person at Dooley’s Hotel, Waterford on Friday 16th and Saturday 17th June 2023.

The theme of the conference is ‘Oral History: Power and Resistance’ and the deadline for abstracts is Friday 28 April 2023. Graham Smith, Professor of Oral History at Newcastle University, is the keynote speaker.

At every stage of the process, oral history projects may be impacted by and engage with issues of power and resistance. Oral histories offer unique insights into the operations of power and resistance in our societies in the past and present. This is not confined to issues of political power and resistance but can include everything from power dynamics within personal relationships, to understanding minority-majority group experiences. Who exercises power, how it is used and how it can be leveraged are key questions for oral historians. Similarly, what is resistance, what forms it takes and how it may or may not effect social change are questions that have been explored with the assistance of oral histories. Power and resistance are also considerations at every level in the creation of an oral history – whose stories are told, how they’re told, the power (or lack thereof) exercised by interviewees and interviewers, and the purpose of oral history itself.

Further information about the conference and the Call for Papers is available at: https://oralhistorynetworkireland.ie/2023-conference.