Exploring marginalised groups and the construction of British and Irish identity in Northern Ireland.

Events such as the First World War, the Easter Rising, the Ulster Covenant, the Home Rule Crisis and Partition shaped Northern Ireland in the 20th century and as people commemorate the centenary anniversaries of these events, we are all reminded that history continues to influence identities, cultures and divisions in our society today.

All of these centenary anniversaries are potentially contentious. They offer a challenge and an opportunity to create a better understanding of our past, both over the last century and the last 40 years of the Troubles and peace process.

This special collection, A Century Later, was intended to be both different and complementary.

We wanted to concentrate on personal stories from the last 100 years, both from individuals and from those who have been marginalised by the century, our ethnic minorities, working class and LGBT communities, in particular. We were also interested to explore how those who had been injured in the Troubles of the more recent past felt about remembrance and commemoration.

Marginalisation is a multi-layered concept. To some extent it is a shifting phenomenon. Being poor, unemployed, disabled, of different ethnic origin or sexuality all bring risk of exclusion from the past and the present.