No Silence Please: The Crone Spoken Library (workshop) | FOTM 2022

The University of Sheffield

Join the Crone Human Library and challenge your perceptions of life after 50 for women in the UK.

The Spiegeltent

Despite recent media interest in menopause, dominant narratives of female ageing are still frequently driven by fear. BUT! Sign up to be a ‘reader’ in our ‘Crone Spoken Library’ and you can listen to some positive and inspiring stories about female ageing.This event will not only challenge negative stereotypes about getting older as a woman and celebrate the joy and wisdom that can come with older age, it may also help YOU feel more positive about life and getting older!What is a human library and how does it work?The Crone Spoken Library draws on the Danish storytelling tradition of ‘The Human Library’ (https://humanlibrary.org). The approach has been shown to reduce stereotypes and prejudices, providing a magical space for listening, as women share stories of ageing with new generations.Our version will work in a similar way to a ‘normal’ library - here’s how it will work…STEP 1. Sign up to book a ticket as a ‘reader’ for either Saturday or Sunday by booking a ticket on this Eventbright page.STEP 2. Arrive at the Speigeltent at least 5 minutes before the start time.STEP 3. Enter the tent and browse a series of book covers which you can pick up and look at. The sort of book covers you can expect could be anything from: <ul><li>“Sex, blogging and activism, age 87.”</li><li>“Body Positivity - being an Instagram ‘Age and Body-positive’ model in your 50s.”</li><li>&quot;The first Lioness - being part of the first official England Women’s football team in 1972.” </li><li>“My life on Greenham Common - sisterhood, activism and defying conventions!”</li><li>…and everything in between!</li></ul>Book titles will be revealed on social media on the run up to the event (please follow: @crone_club_reclaiming_crone on Instagram or @silentshe on Twitter for the latest books!) STEP 4. Pick a book cover you like the sound of, but then rather than getting a printed book to go away and read, you will be led to a booth to meet the real human being who has the lived experience of that book cover.You will then have 20 minutes to listen to their story and ask any questions. Ideally your chat will be recorded for our digital archive, but you will both get the opportunity to review the audio before anything is shared. (Consent forms will be given on the day but there is no pressure to opt in and you can withdraw your consent at any time).STEP 5. If there is time in the session, you will return your book cover to the table and select another book title, then repeat the process.Who can book a ticket?Anyone over the age of 16 is welcome to sign up as a reader, but in particular, we are hoping that readers will include:<ul><li>Younger women who are entering or about to enter peri-menopause and are feeling anxious about getting older</li><li>Younger girls who are not feeling great about themselves right now (eg difficulties with body image, lack of self-confidence) and would benefit from being inspired by older female generations. </li><li>Anyone who would benefit from understanding what life is REALLY like for a diverse number of women as they get older</li><li>Anyone who wants to be part of a celebration that honours the joy, wisdom and mischief that can be found in older age</li></ul>Before you book a ticket, read this…Because numbers of readers are restricted to the EXACT number of ‘books’ for each day, please only book for EITHER the Saturday OR the Sunday, and please let us know asap if you can no longer attend your session. If you are a ‘no show’, it will mean that one of our ‘books’ will be literally ‘left on the shelf.’ It’s one reader per book, so if you commit to a ticket, please come!Please arrive at least 5-10 minutes before the given start time. We are limited for time and the format relies on everyone turning up on time and following the format with military precision!Who is behind this project?The project is a collaboration between Dr Lorna Warren, Sociological Studies, Pam McKinney, iSchool, and Justine Gaubert, creative producer and founder of Crone Club (www.croneclub.org). The Human Library idea was brought to Sheffield by Juliann Hall from South Yorkshire Housing Association, who has also been advising on the project.What’s this ‘Crone’ stuff all about?Our Crone Human Library is part of growing movement to ‘reclaim Crone’ as a positive archetypal figure - the Wise Woman, and the third aspect of the ‘Triple Goddess’, which in neopagan terms represents the third act of a woman’s ‘circle of life’ (Act 1. Maiden. Act 2. Mother. Act 3. ‘Crone’).Increasingly, you’ll start to see more positive definitions of ‘Crone’ to symbolise ‘Crown’ - a symbol of the wisdom and power that women can have in older age. This is reflected in the growing popularity of ‘crone crowning ceremonies’ - or ‘a croning’. This is a ‘right of passage’ ritual, usually around the age of menopause, and/or a ‘significant’ birthday such as hitting 50 or 60, which celebrates a positive ‘stepping into’ our third act of life without fear and without shame.“The Crone began re-emerging into our consciousness in the early 1980s, and today many older women are embracing this connection. We are tapping into the ancient crone’s attributes of wisdom, compassion, transformation, healing laughter, and bawdiness. The ancient crone archetype strengthens our belief and confidence in age-accumulated knowledge, insights and intuitions enabling women to stand up for their rights.” From Anya Silverman https://www.cronescounsel.org/the-ancient-crone/We are hoping that our Crone Spoken Library contribute towards ‘reclaiming crone’ as something positive.Any questions?Dr Lorna Warren, Department of Sociological Studies | University of Sheffield l.warren@sheffield.ac.ukJustine Gaubert, founder of Crone Club: hello@justjuzza.co.ukwww.croneclub.org/blog/humanlibrary

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No Silence Please: The Crone Spoken Library (workshop) | FOTM 2022

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