Description

A box with a handle which says ‘National Benevolent Fund. For members in distress. PLEASE HELP.’

This is one of a set of four wooden money collection boxes used by George Edwards in Norfolk for raising money to help members of National Union of Agricultural Workers (N.U.A.W.).

This was displayed as part of the Extra.Ordinary exhibition at the Museum of English Rural Life. This exhibition relates the stories of six disabled individuals living in rural settings around the UK. Their experiences of collective struggle and resilience are illustrated through objects from The MERL collections. The display was curated during Disability Pride Month, which celebrates the pride that people feel whilst challenging the systemic ableism and discrimination that they face.

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Community curation: This is Cody’s story, Trying to ‘Pass’, inspired by this box. Cody grew up in a rural area, but has a complex relationship with whether or not it is their ‘home.’ It is where they grew up, and where their family still lives, but it has not been a place where they’ve felt unconditionally accepted. Cody’s sense of belonging was contingent on behaving in certain ways or for ‘passing’ as ‘normal’ when they were outside their wider family’s homes. Paid employment has not been viable for Cody, and they would be ineligible to receive benefits if they moved in with their partner.

Cody’s formal diagnosis of bipolar disorder brought intense feelings of relief as it has allowed them a way of justifying their situation. Pre-diagnosis, they would say “‘I don’t work’, y’know, which is like ‘ooh what a princess’ type of thing”, which was then qualified with “I’ve got bipolar disorder.”