2024 Oral History Association Annual Meeting

Some archival mandates suggest preserving documentary materials for 100 years, but when we contemplate the most pressing issues of the twenty-first century—the climate crisis, systemic racism, the rise of fascism, etc.—we realize that we may be running out of time if we don’t participate in actively shaping our current future. What strategies can oral historians and archivists employ to disseminate the essential information held in their repositories, including findability and searchability, as they work to create social justice?

ABSTRACT: Some archival mandates suggest preserving documentary materials for 100 years, but when we contemplate the most pressing issues of the twenty-first century—the climate crisis, systemic racism, the rise of fascism, etc.—we realize that we may not have that time if we don’t participate in actively shaping our current future. What strategies can oral historians and archivists employ to disseminate the essential information held in their repositories, including findability and searchability, as they work to create social justice?