This book provides the first comprehensive study of diverse migrant memories and what they mean for Australia in the twenty-first century. Drawing on rich case studies, it captures the changing political and cultural dimensions of migration memories as they are negotiated and commemorated by individuals, communities and the nation.
Remembering Migration is divided into two sections, the first on oral histories and the second examining the complexity of migrant heritage, and the sources and genres of memory writing. The focused and thematic analysis in the book explores how these histories are re-remembered in private and public spaces, including museum exhibitions, heritage sites and the media. Written by leading and emerging scholars, the collected essays explore how memories of global migration across generations contribute to the ever-changing social and cultural fabric of Australia and its place in the world.
“Remembering Migration pays serious attention to an area of Australian history that is often emotionally charged and politically fraught. Untold stories are brought to life; familiar stories are reframed anew; and the entangled relations between migrant pasts and presents are presented with fresh historical dynamism … many of the chapters in Remembering Migration should spur future studies about how migration to Australia has been remembered and commemorated for years to come.” (Andonis Piperoglou, Griffith University, Australia)
“Kate Darian-Smith and Paula Hamilton have brought us the definitive volume on migration, heritage and memory. At a time when we need, more than ever, to remember the complexity of Australia’s migration past, these essays illustrate the multiple ways in which migration is central to our understanding of Australian history as simultaneously national, transnational and global.” (Professor Glenda Sluga, ARC Kathleen Fitzpatrick Laureate Fellow in International History, University of Sydney, Australia)
“Remembering Migration is a timely, interdisciplinary contribution to the fields of migration, memory and heritage studies. Twenty-one wide-ranging chapters reflect a rich diversity in methodology and source material, as well as in migrant origins and ethnicities, providing a rich update on the current state of migration scholarship in Australia.” (Dr James Hammerton, La Trobe University, Australia)
“An overdue tasting of how Australia’s post-war migration is being recorded, explored and presented: silences are breached, emotions unleashed and voices heard.” (Dr Janis Wilton, University of New England, Australia)