Description
In 1904, 57 Somali Muslim men, women, and children came to Bradford for the city’s Great Exhibition, living in a model village and ‘performing their culture’ for six months. But how did they experience this display?
In this talk, Professor Fozia Bora uncovers Somali perspectives, exploring subtle acts of resistance and the subversion of the colonial gaze.
Focusing on individuals like Halimo Abdi Bedel, who died during the exhibition and was buried in Scholemoor Cemetery, this session traces a powerful, overlooked story linking Bradford’s colonial past to its multicultural present.
About the Speaker
Dr Fozia Bora
Professor Fozia Bora teaches and researches pre-modern Muslim and Islamic history at the University of Leeds and in 2021, received the University of Leeds’ Women of Achievement Award. Bora is the author of Writing History in the Medieval Islamic World and has contributed to research on Bradford’s 1904 Somali Village. Bora’s current work explores the migration, settlement and acculturation narratives of Bradford’s Muslim communities.
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