Explore our extensive archives documenting local Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic community history.
We deliver talks and training at community events, workshops and conferences.
Our library collection has over 14,780
titles, covering topics including culture
and identity, history, politics, and local
studies.
Access excerpts from our collection of recorded life stories
AIU Race Relations Resource Centre and Education Trust
The Resource Centre is free to visit and includes hundreds of books on the history of race, migration and ethnicity. Our archive contains a wide range of documents, leaflets, posters, photographs and ephemera donated by BAME communities across Greater Manchester. The Education Trust offers ongoing training to community groups with an interest in producing archive- quality research materials. We can also help with other aspects of project planning and delivery–from bid writing support to workshops, exhibition space and the long-term preservation of your research.
Please get in touch if you would like to discuss a project idea.
Current Activities
COVID-19 Collecting
Is your experience during COVID-19 represented? Are your stories missing? We’d love to hear from you.
Inspired by creativity #4
It’s May Day, time is flying. The AIU Centre has been working hard over the past month to rethink how, why and what we collect and archive during these strange times – but working from home (and away from our archives) is proving difficult as we’re sure it is for many other organisations.
Inspired by creativity #3
Here we are again, with a focus on crafting with kids this time. For those who are juggling work with homeschooling and trying to stay happy, safe and healthy, crafts can be an amazing use of time!
Inspired by creativity #2
Hello! Another week into working from home and creativity in our team is still flowing (see last week’s post here). Our staff and their families have been cooking, baking, gardening, living-room-picnicking, weaving, painting and making jewellery to name a few!
Inspired by creativity #1
During these difficult and trying times, we are finding comfort and inspiration in creativity. As we’ve each been sharing our crafts and creations, we realised that doing and making is an important part of many of the stories in our collections too.
Three months in: Reflections with Maya Sharma
I’m now in my third month as Collections Access Officer at the Ahmed Iqbal Ullah Race Relations Resource Centre. I’ve found these first few months stimulating both professionally and personally, and would like to share some of my early observations.
Closure from 17.3.2020
In line with the UK Government’s latest advice on coronavirus and the closure of the University of Manchester, the Ahmed Iqbal Ullah Race Relations Resource Centre will be closed until further notice. It was decided yesterday (17.3.2020) that the Centre will close so that we can prioritise the safety of our staff, students, and users […]
Women’s Stories in our Archives: IWD 2020
Our archives tell the stories of many strong women. As you may have seen from our posts on Twitter and Instagram (@aiucentre), this year we’ve decided to shine a light on some of these amazing women, their lives, and their achievements. There are many more important women we could share the stories of – this […]
Working to develop diverse archive collections
Earlier in the year we welcomed representatives from the Greater Manchester Archives and Local Studies Partnership (GMALSP) group to Manchester Central Library. In a 2-hour session with staff from the public archives sector, we discussed ways to increase engagement and collecting with Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities across the city region, to ensure […]
Pop-Up Exhibition: Mixed-race children of war
Visit our pop-up exhibition, based on Lucy Bland’s book, Britain’s Brown Babies: The stories of children born to black GIs and white women in the Second World War.
