Produced in 1970 as a collaboration between Newsreel filmmakers and the League of Revolutionary Black Workers, Finally Got the News paints a picture of race, class, and labor issues in Detroit while exemplifying the ways cinema at the time was used by filmmakers as a means for liberation and a tool for worker struggles.This film screening accompanies Interference Archive’s public exhibition of the same name, which reflects on print publications from across the radical left in the 1970s. We will...
[T]his article describes the joint effort of community organizers and professional archivists who collaborated to establish a community archive for victims of police violence in Cleveland, Ohio. The archive, A People’s Archive of Police Violence in Cleveland, provides a sustainable, autonomous means for Cleveland residents to share their first-hand accounts of police violence in the region. The authors will narrate the archive’s conception and development as well as advance the archive as a...
War crimes files revealing early evidence of Holocaust death camps that was smuggled out of eastern Europe are among tens of thousands of files to be made public for the first time this week.The once-inaccessible archive of the UN war crimes commission, dating back to 1943, is being opened by the Wiener Library in London with a catalogue that can be searched online.Read the full article here.
On March 16, 2017, President Trump sent an outline of his proposed FY 2018 budget to Congress, to be followed by a more detailed proposal in the spring. The budget, known as “America First: A Budget Blueprint to Make America Great Again,” proposes a $54 billion increase in defense and public safety spending that is offset by equivalent cuts in discretionary non-defense programs. Included in those cuts are reductions in, or the total elimination of, funding for federal agencies with a history...
RAO will host its 6th annual Marketplace of Ideas at the SAA Annual Meeting in Portland, OR on Wednesday, July 26, from 2:30–3:45pm, The Marketplace will kick off with each "vendor" giving a 2-minute infomercial to entice "shoppers." After that, we'll divide up and vendors will "sell" their ideas to shoppers in two 20-minute rounds. If you're interested in participating as a vendor, you'll find more information here.
During this webinar, held on April 12, 2017, Sarah Buchanan (University of Missouri), Michele Combs (Syracuse University), Cory Nimer (Brigham Young University), and Elizabeth Russey Roke (Emory University) presented the results of their work with the EAD3 Study Group on Discovery. This discussion covers the group's report and recommendations regarding date encoding, extent encoding, language encoding, name heading encoding, geolocation elements, and linked data in EAD3.
Something important to you missing from this newsletter? Send a submission my way and let me know what you would like to see.Please submit newsletter items about archives and human rights (writ broadly) to hilary.h.barlow@gmail.com. These can be recent publications, upcoming events or exhibitions, opportunities and scholarships, or something else entirely as long as it connects to archives and human rights. For the April newsletter, please send you submission April 20, 2017.
The Human Rights Center— winner of the MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions—conducts research and investigations on war crimes and human rights violations. Using evidence-based methods and innovative technologies, we support efforts to hold perpetrators accountable and to protect vulnerable populations. We also train students and advocates to document human rights violations and turn this information into effective action.
Read the 2016/2017 Report here.
Our Canada, My Story welcomes you to make a connection with different people across the country. Meet Ali, Widia, Kevin, Sylvia, Thomas, Shawn and Mona as they share their experiences with human rights through short films. These stories explore what it means to work towards equality, inclusion and dignity for all Canadians.
Read more about this exhibition here. Another ongoing exhibition at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights is A Perilous Crossing, which focuses on refugees.
This community conversation will give visitors the opportunity to learn about the current issues surrounding the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) and the tribes of Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota.The conversation will be led by Albert Ortiz, Chairman of the American Indian Movement of Indiana and Kentucky and a member of the Kiowa and Yaqui tribes; Dr. Nicole Grant, PhD, Professor of Sociology at Northern Kentucky University and an expert on Indigenous issues; Dr. Joan Ferrante, PhD,...
Three out of five of all federal agencies are flouting the new law that improved the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and required them to update their FOIA regulations, according to the new National Security Archive FOIA Audit released today to celebrate Sunshine Week.
The National Security Archive Audit found that only 38 out of 99 federal agencies have updated their FOIA regulations in compliance with the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016 that was passed with bipartisan, bicameral support. The...
In our very first post for the relaunched Human Rights Archives Section blog, I had the pleasure of interviewing Katharina Hering and Hanna Clutterbuck-Cook of the Concerned Archivists Alliance. They opened up about why they started the Alliance, and what they see as the role of information workers and professional organizations under this administration.
If you would be interested in writing for the HRA blog, send blog post pitches to hilary.h.barlow@gmail.com. Include a short summary of your...
On Thursday, March 16, 2017, President Trump sent an outline of his proposed FY 2018 budget to Congress, to be followed by a more detailed proposal in the spring. The budget, known as “America First: A Budget Blueprint to Make America Great Again,” proposes a $54 billion increase in defense and public safety spending that is offset by equivalent cuts in discretionary non-defense programs. Included in those cuts are reductions in, or the total elimination of, funding for federal agencies with a...
By now you've probably heard about the potentially devastating cuts proposed for Institute of Museum and Library Services. Below are some resources to make your voice heard and hopefully block or at least reduce this disastrous proposal.
This tool from the Every Library Action Center allows you to easily look up the contact information for your representatives, and also provides a call script. You can also email your representatives via Every Library or the American Library Association. Use...
The ALA/SAA/AAM Joint Committee on Archives, Libraries, and Museums (CALM) encourages you to voice your support for the funding agencies that support Libraries, Archives, and Museums!
Here are several actions to take right now to support IMLS from the American Library Association’s (ALA) District Dispatch
Support IMLS and sign on to the Office of Museum Services Appropriations Letter through American Alliance of Museums (AAM)
Share your federal funding impact story through the Society of...
Steering committee member Heidi Butler put up this year's first blog post, Sharing Some Archives Love. Look for more blog entries in the coming weeks!
Though the initial deadline has passed, we are still collecting stories about projects to try, and projects to steer away from. You will find the Google form here. Thanks to those who have already submitted!
Attention, Members!
The RAO Nominations and Elections Committee is seeking nominations to fill vacancies on the RAO Steering Committee; we invite you to volunteer yourself or someone as a candidate! We value a variety of ideas and perspectives in RAO and we encourage candidates from diverse backgrounds, institutions, professional settings, and experience. Students and new professionals should feel welcome to run for these leadership roles.
The Nominating Committee seeks nominations from all...
Something important to you missing from this newsletter? Send a submission my way and let me know what you would like to see.Please submit newsletter items about archives and human rights (writ broadly) to hilary.h.barlow@gmail.com. These can be recent publications, upcoming events or exhibitions, opportunities and scholarships, or something else entirely as long as it connects to archives and human rights. For the March newsletter, please send you submission March 23, 2017.
The human rights archives blog is making a comeback and we need your contributions! Is there an issue that really irks you and you have something to say? Is there something in the news that can benefit from an archival perspective? Did you work on an incredible project related to archives and human rights and you want to share you insights?Send blog post pitches to hilary.h.barlow@gmail.com. Include a short summary of your idea and why you're the best person to write it. Publication experience...
Join us from 1 pm to 4:30 pm on Monday, March 13, 2017 to celebrate Sunshine Week and learn more about open government! Leading experts, advocates and technologists will join the National Archives’ Office of Government Information Services for this special afternoon program. The event is free and open to the public but registration is recommended.
See the schedule of events here and register here.
Washington, D.C. February 7, 2017 – CIA covert aid to Italy continued well after the agency’s involvement in the 1948 elections – into the early 1960s – averaging around $5 million a year, according to a draft Defense Department historical study published today for the first time by the National Security Archive at The George Washington University.
Read more here.
We are very excited to talk with Jarrett Drake, digital archivist at Princeton University’s Mudd Manuscript Library. He was awarded an Innovation Award from the National Digital Stewardship Alliance (NDSA) in 2016 for his work in challenging and re-examining the practices of archiving and documenting history, particularly relating to preserving the under-represented voices in history. Follow his writings here.
Read the interview here.
On January 11, 2017, Senators Mike Lee (Utah) and Marco Rubio (Florida) introduced S.103–115th Congress, the “Local Zoning Decisions Protection Act of 2017.” The language is blunt: “no Federal funds may be used to design, build, maintain, utilize, or provide access to a Federal database of geospatial information on community racial disparities or disparities in access to affordable housing.” A similar billwas also proposed in the House of Representatives.
Read more here.
