Former First Minister and current MSP for Glasgow Pollok, Humza Yousaf met with members of the Tape Letters Scotland team to look round the Tape Letters exhibition at the Museum of Edinburgh.
Created by Modus Arts, Tape Letters Scotland is a social history project which shines a light on the practice of recording and sending messages on cassette tape as an unorthodox method of communication by Pakistanis who migrated and settled in Scotland between 1960-1980. Running until 23 February the exhibition platforms the experiences of members of Edinburgh’s Pakistani community, drawing directly from both first-hand interviews gathered as part of the project, and from the informal and intimate conversations on the cassette tapes themselves. Tape Letters Scotland is made possible by The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Artistic Director of Modus Arts and Tape Letters Scotland Project Director Wajid Yaseen said: “Since launching the project in Scotland in 2022 it has been our immense privilege to work with Scottish-Pakistani families across the central belt who have taken the time to share their personal stories and cassette tapes with us. In collaboration with our partner organisations and venues, we have launched a series of creative outputs including three exhibitions, a digital exhibition, educational resources, a podcast series, and a physical cassette tape archive at the National Library of Scotland which not only helps to raise awareness but also cements a lasting legacy. As the project draws to a close, we were delighted to welcome Humza Yousaf to the exhibition at the Museum of Edinburgh, to share these insightful, personal accounts from this important period of Scottish-Pakistani social history.”
Former First Minister and current MSP for Glasgow Pollok, Humza Yousaf said: “Can I thank the brilliant team involved in putting together the Tape Letters Scotland project. As someone whose parents came to this country in the 1960s from Pakistan, I found this exhibition to be deeply moving. For those of us who are second, third or fourth generation immigrants, we often forget the sacrifices of the first generation who arrived here, and how hard it must have been for them to leave behind family, friends and a whole community. The tape letters were a wonderful insight into how the first generation of immigrants from Pakistan used their ingenuity to keep a close bond with those they had left behind, as they started a new life here in Scotland. I want to thank all those who worked hard to ensure these tapes could be exhibited at the Museum of Edinburgh.”
https://www.edinburghmuseums.org.uk/whats-on/tape-letters
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
