University of British Columbia Press
Photography, Memory, and Refugee Identity
About this book
On 13 December 1948, a small ship carrying 347 Estonian refugees fleeing Soviet rule arrived at Pier 21 in Halifax. In Photography, Memory, and Refugee Identity, anthropologist Lynda Mannik analyzes the refugee experience through the photographic record of those who made that harrowing voyage across the Atlantic more than sixty years ago.
Drawing on a collection of photographs taken during the voyage and at the Pier 21 detention centre, Mannik asks surviving passengers to describe their migration, their reception in Canada, and their feelings about the terms refugee and boat person. She explores to what extent the photos reflect the passengers’ experiences as they remember them and how those experiences compare with representations of refugees in news media, in government rhetoric, and at the Pier 21 Museum in Halifax. Ultimately, Mannik demonstrates that the photographs in the SS Walnut collection bear witness to the refugee experience even as the meanings attached to them have changed over time and in shifting contexts.
Author / Editor information
Reviews
“An excellent resource for students and researchers who work with historical collections of images, Lynda Mannik’s book enhances our understanding of the complexity of visual histories and the creation of Canadian identities through photography. Rich in ethnographic detail and critical methodology, this book does a superb job of revealing the tension that resides at the intersection of public and private viewings of images and the consequent implications for the production of identity.”
Topics
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Front Matter
i -
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Contents
vii -
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Illustrations
ix -
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Preface
xi -
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Acknowledgments
xvii -
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Introduction
1 -
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Passengers’ Photographic Perspectives on the Voyage and Detention, 1948–49
24 -
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Arrival by Boat and the Media, 1948
53 -
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Still Photos Come to Life at the Pier 21 Museum in 1999
82 -
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Memories and Stories, Sixty Years Later
104 -
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Nationalism and Identity in Retrospect
140 -
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Conclusion
168 -
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Notes
175 -
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References
182 -
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Index
193
