There are few repositories and archives that hold extensive collections of oral histories pertaining to people of color, let alone community stories that help tell more comprehensive stories, which speak to changes in the built environment or serve to reinforce cultural identity and collective memory. While some cultural institutions have made a concerted effort to develop collections that include histories of people of color, there remains a pressing need to strengthen archival collections by recording and preserving place-based, hyper-local, non-dominant oral narratives that can create a blueprint for understanding our shared history. This is especially true for those who work in small and mid-sized cultural institutions.

This webinar offers insights from preservation professionals on the type of care work it takes to preserve our past using similar techniques as archivists.  By the end of the program attendees will learn techniques including:

-How to build long-term relationships with residents and community partners to help redress urban inequities
-A more holistic management approach to combat the misrepresentation of publics that have been historically excluded from traditional archival practice

Presenters:
Rita Cofield, Associate Project Specialist, Getty Conservation Institute
Deqah Hussein-Wetzel, Historic Preservationist, Co-host/Producer, Urban Roots

The statements and opinions expressed by panelists, hosts, attendees, or other participants of this event are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of, nor are endorsed by, the American Alliance of Museums.