When analysing collective narratives and imaginaries about anti-totalitarian resistance in Europe, one issue that stands out is the scant attention paid to the role of women. With notable exceptions, the Resistance appears as “something men do”, and women are relegated to a secondary and subsidiary role. The two-year EU funded WIRE project aims to place the role of women -both as agents and as victims- at the centre of present-day historical narratives of anti-totalitarian resistance in Europe, to help reshape historical memory and the values associated with it.
The WIRE consortium, coordinated by the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), includes cultural institutions, public authorities, victims’ organizations, research and archive institutes, universities, commemorative and learning sites, museums and public agents from 4 countries: Villa Decius Association, from Poland; Scuola di Pace di Monte Sole, in Italy; Contemporary Social History Archives (ASKI), in Greece, and Memorial Democràtic, from Spain.
WIRE is an activity-based, community outreach-focused multidisciplinary project that lies at the intersection of history and memory. For two years, the partners will organise activities aimed at establishing a contact link between the academic knowledge of the role of women in resistance movements and the promotion of historical awareness among the public. The participants will identify women who participated in various resistance movements in Europe. They will also reconstruct their memories and make them publicly known.
Through the use innovative methodologies, including the generation of digital tools, unconventional dissemination forms to reach the wider community, scholarly verification of historical, educational, and technical aspects, WIRE will contribute to academic and public knowledge of the history and memory of women’s participation in anti-totalitarian resistance in Europe.