Allihies Autumn School to explore migration, identity and ‘the politics of place’

The three-day event will bring together speakers from Ireland and the US to discuss migration, identity, belonging and place

This is the third autumn school held in the coastal village’s famous copper mine museum and will run from October 9 to 11. File picture Dan Linehan

‘Migration, identity and the politics of place’ will be the main themes for this year’s Allihies Autumn School in West Cork, with a diverse line-up of guest speakers.

They include Teresa Buczkowska, chief executive of the Immigrant Council of Ireland; Dr Andrea Ciribuco, lecturer in the School of Languages, Literatures and Cultures at the University of Galway; Luke Finken, an educator at Lake County Public Schools in Leadville, Colorado; and Kathleen Fitzsimmons, an educator, public historian and researcher from Leadville, Colorado.

This is the third autumn school held in the coastal village’s famous copper mine museum and will run from October 9 to 11.

The organisers said that as the world shifts, the question of “Who Belongs?” gains urgency.

A spokesman for the organising committee said the autumn school would provide a forum for discussion and debate on migration, politics, identity and community life, drawing on perspectives from Ireland and around the world.

He said meaningful conversations were particularly important in an increasingly polarised world, where extremism appeared to be gaining a foothold, and could help foster a greater understanding of migration and the reasons behind the borders drawn between countries.

Speakers from Ireland and the US

There are also speakers from Butte, Montana, USA, which is twinned with Allihies because of its shared copper mining heritage.

When the mines closed down in the West Cork village, thousands of miners and their families emigrated to the American region.

They include Audrey Jaap, director of Butte’s Silver Bow Archives, and Lindsay Mulcahy, assistant director of the Silver Bow Archives.

The weekend will also include a contribution from Zak Moradi, a Kurdish-Irish hurler who plays at left corner-forward for the Leitrim senior team.

There will also be a panel discussion involving three local men who lived through the 1950s and 1960s in Ireland, experienced emigration and have now returned to live in the Allihies area.

Art exhibition and concert 

The programme will also feature an art exhibition by Aubrey Edwards, along with discussions and a concert on Saturday night (October 10) featuring Philip King and Scullion.

The event is being sponsored by Bantry Credit Union.