Freedom of Movement was a long term dance project for and about women who have experienced forced migration during the refugee crisis. The group was made up of women from Pamoja based at NNRF (Nottingham & Nottinghamshire Refugee Forum) and from Kairos (Nottingham Lesbian Immigration Support Group). The project was essentially ‘a dance-based exploration of women’s experiences of migration’, was funded by the University of Nottingham and a collaboration between the ICEMiC research centre, represented by Dr Aimie Purser, and myself.
I was a General Adviser at NNRF for several years before I and saw this project (in summer 2018) as a merging of my voluntary and professional work.
Refugee lives are often characterised by experiences of migratory movement and border crossing, of displacements and emplacements, of transnational connections and of those questions of belonging, home and return that continue to ‘move’ us even once settled in a host country. This project seeks to give voice to these experiences of movement through movement (dance), with a particular focus on the expression and communication of women’s embodied, sensual and emotional experiences of migration. – Dr Aimie Purser
