OMA Exhibit
As part of the Special Collections and Archives Research Center‘s new Signature Areas Exhibit, the OMA is featuring numerous manuscript, photo, and oral history collections available to researchers!
Exhibit Photos and Information
Oregon’s African American and Latino/a Communities
Oregon’s African American Community
Various collections within the OMA reflect Oregon’s African American community’s continued commitment toward social justice through community organizations and education. The Urban League of Portland is a community-based organization with a mission to “empower African Americans and other Oregonians to achieve equality in education, employment, and economic security.” The Corvallis, Oregon branch of the NAACP was chartered by the national organization in 1971 with the mission to improve the “political, educational, social, and economic status of minority groups within the Corvallis area.” Dr. Jean Moule is Professor Emeritus of OSU’s College of Education. Throughout her career, Moule focused on social justice issues related to multicultural education and teacher training.
The Latino/a community’s impact in Oregon through agriculture, education, and politics, can be researched within OMA collections. The Braceros in Oregon Photograph Collection documents Oregon’s Braceros’ harvesting work in the fields as well as their activities in the farm labor camps. The Annabelle Jaramillo Papers reflect Jaramillo’s work as an advocate for civil rights and environmental protection, especially through her service as Benton County Commissioner. The Colegio César Chávez Collection documents Arthur Olivo and his family while he was a student and groundskeeper at the Colegio during the early 1980s. The Erlinda Gonzales-Berry Papers document Gonzales-Berry’s research in the fields of Latino literature and culture and immigration from Mexico to the United States.
Oregon’s Asian American and Native American Communities
Oregon’s Asian American Community
Collections pertaining to Asian American communities within Oregon include the Oregon Chinese Disinterment Documents collection and the Japanese American Association of Lane County, Oregon, Oral History Digital Collection. The Chinese disinterment documents pertain to the 1948-1949 disinterment and shipment to China of hundreds of Chinese immigrants’ remains from cemeteries throughout Oregon. The oral histories of eleven Japanese Americans document the immigrant experiences of the interviewees: their parents’ and grandparents’ lives, their World War II experiences in the United States or in Japan, their lives in Eugene and neighboring communities in the years following the end of the war, and their experiences living in Oregon.
Oregon’s Native American Community
The OMA is a strong advocate of community archiving and this past summer organized and hosted the Oregon Tribal Archives Institute, a gathering of tribal archivists, records managers, and culture keepers. Notably, although the OMA does not actively collect records produced by Oregon’s tribal communities, it does include materials about various tribes. One such collection is the Mater Engineering, Inc. Records pertaining to the company’s consultation work with various tribes in the use of their forest lands. Another collection is the Gifford Photograph Collection includes early 20th century images of Native Americans from the Columbia Plateau region and images of Native American participants in the Pendleton Round-Up in the 1940s.
Multiculturalism at OSU
In addition to documenting multicultural communities on the state level, the OMA also highlights OSU’s multicultural history. OSU’s history includes low points such as boycotts and walk outs due to racial incidents as well as triumphs such as the creation of four campus cultural centers. There are various university records collections pertaining to the university’s efforts to create a more inclusive campus as well as to record the injustices committed such as the Affirmative Action Records (RG 172), the Office of Multicultural Affairs Records (RG 225), and the Diversity Development Office Records (RG 228). Other information sources include The Daily Barometer and the Beaver Yearbook.
Exhibit Information
Dates: November 2012-Spring 2013
Location: OSU Valley Library, 5th Floor, 8:30am – 5pm
Exhibit Curation: Natalia Fernández, Oregon Multicultural Librarian
Exhibit Design: Christy Turner, OSU Libraries Special Collections and Archives Research Center Student Worker
