When Britain went into national lockdown in March 2020, it was not only dealing with a health crisis, but a social one too. Stories of doctors and nurses battling on the frontline are numerous, but what happened more quietly in communities is less well documented. These stories tend to involve small but important contributions, often by women. We are looking to record those stories so they will be remembered, and appreciated into the future.
We are currently seeking oral history interviewees – any women helped keep society running during the 2020 lockdown. This could be people who ran food banks, sewed scrubs, provided mental health services or rallied the neighbours in some way. We are particularly looking for women in Hackney, Tower Hamlets and Newham.
The interviews are conducted by our volunteers, who this week receive their training from the Oral History Society. The interviews are used as part of our public education work, before being archived at the Bishopsgate Institute.
The threat to this history is very real. I have been in the archives all winter trying to discover what women did during the 1918 flu pandemic, but sadly a lot of it is now lost. I want to ensure that the same does not happen again, and these small but important acts are recorded and preserved for future generations
If you know someone (perhaps even yourself?) that you think we should interview, please do get in touch.