About
 

Following on from the State of Disappearance exhibition and Living With Disappearance workshop, which were held in the City of Bristol 2023, the idea of establishing a dedicated field of study that specifically  focused on Disappearance Studies was presented  at a major international conference in Belfast in June 2024. 

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Recognising how disappearance tends to be less considered in the study of political violence when compared to areas such as genocide or terrorism (both of which relying on the practice), collective agreement was reached on the primacy and focus it deserves. Disappearance is the most extreme form of violence. It is also the most challenging as it seeks to fully deny truth, meaning and justice. It is also a problem which takes us directly into any shared concern with crimes against humanity and our ability to come to terms with the human capacity to inflict calculated terror, pain and suffering on fellow humans. 

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Given the global nature of the problem, the violence of disappearance also demands new thinking and multiple responses, which bring together academics, policy makers and artists to counter a problem that is globally expansive yet most intimately felt. The Disappearance Studies network will be the forum through which such responses are considered and alternative approaches developed.  

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