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This week most of the Now Then team had the great pleasure of being part of a three-day People's Newsroom 'sprint', exploring new ideas about how storytelling can be both people-powered and centred around communities. We're starting to think differently about why we tell stories and who they serve, so it was amazing to connect with writers, editors, designers, podcasters and storytellers to think deeply about this.
This week we've got two pieces exploring our connection with the city's rivers: an interview with composer Benjamin Tassie, who has given musical expression to the Rivelin with custom-built water instruments, and a piece about the upcoming City of Rivers show at Weston Park Museum. We've spotlighted many of the people and organisations taking part, including the River Dôn Project, which like Now Then is coordinated by Opus.
Elsewhere we've got no fewer than two reviews of Teenage Fanclub's gig at the Leadmill (sorry to our reviewers, Tom and Steve, for the mix-up!), and a piece from guest writer Nabila Cruz De Carvalho asking: How can we trust the people and companies behind AI?
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Musician
Benjamin Tassie has built bespoke, hand-made instruments and then
lowered them into the River Rivelin – and in the process
reawakened older ideas about our place within nature
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“There is a quality to the sound at that time of day that you don't get so much later on” |
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The
free show at Weston Park Museum features over 300 artworks and found
objects, exploring how Sheffield’s five rivers have shaped the city
geographically, economically and psychologically.
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“Their mission was to capture the unspoiled beauty of Rivelin before it was over-run by the city” |
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AI is a product of racial capitalism, so the question is not, ‘Can we trust AI?’ but, ‘How can we trust those behind AI?’ writes Nabila Cruz de Carvalho.
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| Elsewhere: |
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Three women who have lost loved ones to state violence have described how they spent years fighting for justice while coping with the grief caused by flawed and dangerous social security, policing and mental health systems. Anna Susianta, Imogen Day and Ajibola Lewis spoke at an event that examined the impact of state violence on bereaved families and how they each fought for justice. Commenting on the death of her son after "unnecessary and unreasonable" restraint by police on a mental health ward, Lewis told Disability News Service: "It’s taken its toll [...] but you can’t kill people and get away with it. I’m not having it." |
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Local musicians Lucy and Hazel have joined forces with a group of passionate community members to organise a fundraiser for the group Medical Aid for Palestinians. They're planning hot food and cakes (vegan and gluten-free options included), raffle prizes, a clothes swap, an African dance class and a poetry reading. It takes place on Tuesday 21 November, 6:30-10pm, at Highfield Trinity Methodist Church. |
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Sheffield's Peace and Craft Fair is returning to the Town Hall a week on Saturday (25 November), 11am to 4pm. This long-standing event is fundraising to support asylum seekers in South Yorkshire, and will feature craft stalls with recycled and upcycled homemade crafts, as well as activist stalls hosted by the likes of Greenpeace, Amnesty International, Extinction Rebellion, Sheffield Renewables and Scrapdragon. Entry is £1 and under-18s get in free. |
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While we're recommending events and goings-on, we very much like the look of a Buds & Spawn gig coming up at Bishops House on Wednesday 22 November, featuring performances from VÄLVĒ (described as "folk lullabies re-imagined by the BBC Radiophonic Workshop") and Sheffield-based recorder player, whistle player and vocalist Juliana Day. |
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