Migration & Museums

“At last, I am free” – a visit to the National Museum of African and American History and Culture

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  I stroll past Trump International whose tycoon owner was once accused of denying homes to black applicants. Moreover, in an attempt to oust the first African American from the Presidency, he persisted with the racist fantasy that Obama was born outside the USA. I mutter Michelle’s words, “When they go low, we go high. … Continue reading “At last, I am free” – a visit to the National Museum of African and American History and Culture

A dream deferred is a dream no longer – Dedication Ceremony for the NMAAHC

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I pass a stall holder doing a roaring trade in Black Lives Matter T shirts, badges and carrier bags featuring the President and First Lady. A limousine drives past and a cheer, as in a Mexican wave, ripples through the crocodile of people weaving along the Mall. Barack and Michelle wave through the limousine’s black … Continue reading A dream deferred is a dream no longer – Dedication Ceremony for the NMAAHC

A town within a town -Ballinstadt Emigration Museum in Hamburg

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I peep through a porthole over Hamburg harbour just as many migrants must have done when they left for the New World over a century ago. But unlike the migrants I am on dry land in my cabin-inspired room in the Hotel Hafen Hamburg, previously a seafarers' home. The hotel is decked out with seafaring … Continue reading A town within a town -Ballinstadt Emigration Museum in Hamburg

Louisiana, Libeskind’s Labyrinth and the Jews’ escape across the Sound

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I meander through a maze of narrow, winding passages framed by walls of huge grey slabs. They entrap me; slope and slice across my path; disorientate me. There is no mistaking the architecture. It has to be Libeskind. The design is a miniature version of the Jewish Museum in Berlin but encased in the old … Continue reading Louisiana, Libeskind’s Labyrinth and the Jews’ escape across the Sound

Church bells yes but not the Muslim call to prayer

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I walk past a bland housing estate and through a tidy shopping mall. There are no Turkish kebab shops or Indian curry houses; no Vietnamese mail parlours or black hair dressers. Why would an Immigration Museum be housed in this unremarkable part of Denmark? The town of Farum, a 30-minute train ride from Copenhagen, is … Continue reading Church bells yes but not the Muslim call to prayer

Becoming a Copenhager or Don’t Leave me Alone with the Danes

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I caught Becoming a Copenhager just days before the Museum of Copenhagen closed its doors in preparation for its relocation to a refurbished building in the city centre. I liked the idea. An exhibition about internal migration from the countryside to the capital as well as from abroad: that explored what unites rather than divides … Continue reading Becoming a Copenhager or Don’t Leave me Alone with the Danes

The Jewish Museum and Tolerance Centre in Moscow – the largest Jewish museum in the world?

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The Jewish Museum and Tolerance Centre, that opened in Moscow 2012, is said to be the largest Jewish museum in the world. It is housed in the restored Bahmetevsky bus garage, originally designed by Konstantin Melnikov, a leading light of the avant-garde in the 1920s. Melnikov was associated with the Constructivists but refused to be … Continue reading The Jewish Museum and Tolerance Centre in Moscow – the largest Jewish museum in the world?

Luxembourg’s Ellis Island in Dudelange

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We stand on the summit of a hill in sweltering heat. “This is our Ellis island,” says Nicolas flourishing his hand across the landscape. “It’s where migrants first came to Luxembourg and, indeed, still come.” But instead of Atlantic waves lapping beneath our feet railway tracks, bordered by disused steelworks, sweep towards France. And, across … Continue reading Luxembourg’s Ellis Island in Dudelange