To Unite or Divide? With this question, Contested Histories explores contestation over statutes, street names and other historical legacies in public spaces to identify principles, processes and best practices for decision-makers and civil society advocates. It also aims to provide information and tools for educators that help learners to better understand, unpack and critically reflect upon the complexities of historical memories that are disputed.
Contested Histories is run by a dedicated team and network of experts, research associates and research interns from across the world. It is founded by the Institute for Historical Justice and Reconciliation (IHJR), coordinated by EuroClio - European Association of History Educators and funded by the European Union. It holds a collection of nearly 600 case studies worldwide, including cases like the Cecile John Rhodes Statue at the University of Cape Town in South Africa the Khala Goda Statue in Mumbai, India and the statue of Jan Pieterszoon Coen in Hoorn, the Netherlands. Each case study contains background information about the site and provides historical context to the contestation as well as resources for further reading. These case studies can also be used as a starting point to further explore a contested history in a public space around your locale.
It also provides a collection of various educational resources, including toolkits, learning resources, teaching strategies as well as resources that focus specifically on decolonising the curriculum. There are different ways in which you can get involved in Contested Histories. As a volunteer, you can help with researching, and updating case studies, writing blogs and even mapping new case studies. The team is currently also looking at reviewers for a long list of different case studies across the globe. A total of 42 case studies are still looking for reviewers to ensure the accuracy and quality of the case studies.