Jemma Nelville: Human Rights Researcher and Writer
Jemma Nelville is a writer committed to illuminating the times and places in which we live. Her debut book 'Constitution Street', part memoir, part social history and a call to action, focuses on real-life stories of the people living on the same street, bringing the social and political together. Join us for some very #CreativeConversations!
Creative Conversations
Date: Monday 16 March 2020
Time: 13:00 - 14:00
Venue: University of Glasgow Memorial Chapel
Category: Public lectures
Speaker: Jemma Nelville
Jemma Nelville: Human Rights Research and Writer
Jemma Neville is a writer with a background in human rights law. She is Director of the national development agency for community-led arts, Voluntary Arts Scotland. She was the inaugural Community Fellow at the Institute of Advanced Studies in Humanities, University of Edinburgh, and has been shortlisted for the Guardian International Development Journalism Award.
Her debut book Constitution Street: Finding Hope in the Age of Anxiety (404 Ink, 2019) considers what real-life stories from neighbours of one street in Leith reveal about today’s constitutional crisis in an age of anxiety. Part memoir, part social history, part exploration of a new constitution for the day we live in, Neville’s debut encourages a reclamation of human rights practice as something that belongs to each of us, too important to be left to politicians and lawyers.
Jemma gets to know the people and stories that have lived on her street for decades, showcasing real life accounts of perseverance, courage and vulnerability, and that extraordinary stories are behind each door. Constitution Street takes a view on the global issue of human rights through the lens of one street and its inhabitants.
As part of the on-going Creative Conversation speaker series Jemma Nelville comes to campus to chat about his writing. Bring your lunch and burning questions!
Sponsored by the Ferguson Bequest and programmed by Creative Writing at University of Glasgow.