A digital exhibition in response to the Covid-19 pandemic by a community of asylum seekers, refugees and migrants (Unlocked Archive)

As part of the Humanity Hub’s first seasonal programming theme, focusing on COVID responses, we will share insights by members of the Humanity Hub community and the Hague Peace & Justice ecosystem. This week, we are spotlighting the Unlocked Archive, a project supported by the Open University, International Institute of Social Studies, and the University of Wales.


A digital exhibition in response to the Covid-19 pandemic by a community of asylum seekers, refugees and migrants.

Unlocked Archives brings together the contributions of a global community of people in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Working through collaboration and friendship, the stories gathered together here form a unique public collection – a continuously growing, living archive, documenting this historical moment.

Most contributors to this project identify as refugees, asylum seekers, migrants or stateless. Others are involved in asylum and refugee rights advocacy, community support organisations and/or research in this field. The project explores how inequalities have been exacerbated by the crisis. The pandemic has shaken political systems around the world, making structural racism, class inequality and other forms of oppression even more visible. These problems were already an everyday reality for marginalised people, but have been made worse by Covid-19.