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Category: Oral History

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

The Terrain of Freedom: Mapping Stories about People and Places in the African American Struggle for Justice, Rights, & Equality

Posted by: Guha Shankar

I wish I knew how It would feel to be free I wish I could break All the chains holding me I wish I could say All the things that I should say Say ’em loud, say ’em clear For the whole round world to hear Nina Simone, I Wish I Knew How It Would …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

VHP’s Newest Online Exhibit: Breaking Ground and Boundaries: Veteran Changemakers

Posted by: Megan Harris

Earlier this week, the Veterans History Project (VHP) launched a new online exhibit to highlight the stories of veteran “changemakers.” You might be asking yourself, who or what is a changemaker, exactly, and why are we focusing on them? In early 2019, the Library of Congress launched a year-long initiative to explore the stories of …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

“Display Day” Brings Veterans to the Table

Posted by: Megan Harris

The following is a guest post by 2019 Junior Fellows Kim Windham and Patricia Glaser, who worked with the Veterans History Project (VHP) this summer. As a community-driven archive where all veterans’ histories are valued, the Veterans History Project (VHP) has collected more than 110,000 veterans’ narratives of their time in service.  All of these collections …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

“See the World” in the Veterans History Project Archive

Posted by: Megan Harris

Kimberly Windham and Patricia Glaser are Junior Fellows working for the Veterans History Project this summer. This guest blog post, written by Kim and based on research done by both Fellows, describes their experience exploring VHP collections. As Junior Fellows, our mandate was to discover and elevate the voices of African Americans in the Veterans History …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

Homegrown Plus: Traditional Hindustani Music with Soumya Chakraverty and Devapriya Nayak

Posted by: Stephanie Hall

In the Homegrown Plus series, we present Homegrown concerts that also had accompanying oral history interviews, placing both together in an easy-to-find blog post. (Find the whole series here!) We’re continuing the series with a concert and oral history with Soumya Chakraverty and Devapriya Nayak. This event was cosponsored with the Library of Congress Asian American Association …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

From Behind the Lines to Between the Lines: War Poems and Beyond

Posted by: Kerry Ward

The following is a blog post in honor of National Poetry Month. While walking the halls of the Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building, it is not difficult to be inspired by the Lyric Poetry Hall.  I have often wondered what artists and poets have ventured through these halls for the past 122 years. Were …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

Bidding Blue Skies and Tailwinds to the Last of the Doolittle Raiders

Posted by: Kerry Ward

Just days shy of the 77th anniversary of the Doolittle Raid, Lieutenant Colonel Richard “Dick” Cole, the sole surviving Doolittle Raider, flew west this morning. He was 103 years old. I had the great privilege of working with Cole at airshows and through veteran services. We laughed over him telling my father he was getting …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

A Million Vietnam Wars

Posted by: Kerry Ward

March 29th is National Vietnam Veterans Day, and this post explores the variety of experiences in Vietnam showcased by Veterans History Project collections. From ticker tape parades to protests, American citizens have both supported and condemned their country’s military involvement in various conflicts. Perhaps no conflict captures this vacillation more than U.S. involvement in the …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

Reflections on the ‘Code Girls’ Reunion and My Mother’s Story

Posted by: Lisa Taylor

The following is a guest blog post by Anne Dowling, the daughter of World War II “Code Girl” Kathleen Bradley Delaney, and a guest at the “Code Girls” Reunion held at the Library of Congress on March 22, 2019. Click here to watch a recording of this historic event. The Reunion I attended the “Code …