Division: Leeds400

It was a big moment when I received the grant for my new project Division. 

My work has always centred on people, identity and the stories that are too often left out of our history. I wanted this project to explore 400 years of Leeds—its people, migration, working-class history and long tradition of social activism. What divides us? What unites us? How do the threads of our history weave Leeds into the city it is today. At the beginning of the project, I did not know where the research would take me, I only knew that I wanted to listen to the people of Leeds and tell the story of the city through their voices. I wanted to look beneath the headlines and ask: Are we really as divided as we are constantly being told?

At the beginning of this project, I maintained that I could not find division among the ordinary people I worked with. I questioned why the media seemed so intent on flooding us with a barrage of divisiveness, forcing it down our throats. During this research time, shocking far-right, anti-migrant riots broke out in Ballymena—the place where my birth mother was born. Suddenly, the research became even more personal.

Throughout my research, I worked with groups across Leeds: I visited many places and spoke to taxi drivers, people on the streets, people in clubs and in support groups. I did find division. I found it in the barriers faced by disabled people. I found it in the mistreatment of migrants and asylum seekers. I found division between communities and within the ‘Black Arts’. But I could not find any bigotry face to face. It seemed to want to hide from me. So where does it live? Where does it come from? Does it grow in silence, behind closed doors and on screens? Is bigotry a disease—and, if it is, why do we keep feeding it?

I began collecting the People’s Poem from all the places I travelled to, visited and where I delivered workshops. I would like to thank every person who contributed their words and trusted me with their stories. Art connects us to our inner selves and to one another. This is evident in the sculptures, theatres, poetry, music and dancing across Leeds. The more I looked for division, the more complicated the picture became. Division was there, built into systems and opportunities—but among the ordinary people I met, I kept finding community.

The more I searched for what separates us, the more I discovered what unites us. I began to see Leeds as a piece of cloth, with its people as the threads weaving themselves together. We have always been taught history by the victors. Yet what comes through in the history of Leeds is the story of her people. They are all here and part of the cloth. Leeds belongs to her people. Her integrity lives in them. I would really love people to come and see the show. It is a tribute to Leeds,

Division by Michelle Scally Clarke will be premiered at Slunglow’s Warehouse in Holbeck on 18th and 19th September. Tickets are free to book and pay what you decide on the night.  Find tickets and more information here.