Fairbrother Lecture 2022

Fairbrother Lecture 2022
Faces of War: The Hidden Stories of the Female Fighters
Our strongest images of participants in war are often deeply masculine. Where women do step into view as armed fighters, they are painted as exceptional, at the extremes of violence and are often highly sexualised. Alternatively, if their contributions lie away from the battlefield, their efforts are dimmed as supporting roles in the story of the war. Join historical researcher Francesca Baldwin to explore what it means to be a woman in war and how history can warp our view of the contributions women make to conflicts. As the Tigray War (2020 - present) threatens to be one of the greatest humanitarian crises of the decade, Francesca explores the deeply gendered dynamics underpinning the current conflict in Ethiopia.

Working from Francesca's research on women's lived experiences of the ongoing Tigray War in Ethiopia, with reflections on the hidden roles of women in war across history, this lecture will explore the different channels through which women participate in and shape wars. It will consider how their roles in conflict redefine what it means to be a 'female fighter', the relationship between womanhood and war, and how many women's stories remain hidden so as not to disrupt familiar ideas of femininity in times of peace.

Admission free. Open to all but booking essential.

The lecture will be followed by a drinks reception.