Welcome to the New Destinations in Oral History Blog

2009 Southwest Oral History Association Annual Meeting Co-sponsored by
USC LIBRARIES/Special Collections/"LA As Subject"
Doheny Memorial Library – USC & California African American Museum

“New Destinations in Oral History”
March 26-29, 2009

The 2009 SOHA Annual Conference in Los Angeles promises to be an adventure. As the entertainment capital of the world and an important historical nexus, Los Angeles is an ideal place to explore the intersection of oral history, music, and other media from films to interactive web sites. The conference program committee is bringing together oral historians, performing artists, filmmakers, scholars, students and other practitioners in a multi-disciplinary, multi-format conference that will highlight the multiplicity of work centered around oral history, entertainment, music and performance. Paper topics and sessions deal with various aspects of oral history work including interviewing, processing, digital and archival collection methods

The Conference is utilizing several fascinating locations within the University of California and Exposition Park, all within easy walking distance because of co-sponsorships by LA As Subject at the Doheny Memorial Library and the California African American Museum. The Doheny Memorial Library is an exquisite historic building. Our meeting rooms include the lovely Intellectual Commons meeting room with a view of the USC campus from arched windows.

You may want to come a day or two early or stay later at SOHA special hotel rates to explore the array of museums at Exposition Park, the Natural History Museum, the California Science Center, and the California African American Museum or the nearby Adams district architecture or downtown LA, Disney Concert Hall, Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, Olvera Street El Pueblo Historic Monument with five museums, China Town, etc.

The workshops on Friday, March 27th (9:00 am to 4:15 pm) are at the Doheny Memorial Library at USC. They include an Introductory Workshop in the morning and a choice of two digital workshops in the afternoon. The morning introductory workshop is given by expert oral historians, Alva Moore Stevenson and Virginia R. Espino from the UCLA Center for Oral History Research. http://www2.library.ucla.edu/libraries/cohr/6265.cfm

The digital workshops are “Digital Dynamos: Creating Machinima Movies and Multimedia Interactive History Lessons with Oral Histories” given by digital wizard, Randall Fujimoto, from the Go for Broke National Education Center and “Birthing Digital: Portable Digital Audio Recorders” given by digital entrepreneur, Susan Kitchens.

A free mid-morning mini-tour alternative for advanced oral historians is a visit to the USC SHOAH Foundation Institute for Visual History and Education at the Leavey Library at USC with presentations by Archivists Claude Zachary, Crispin Brooks and Director Karen Jungblut. Attendees can also spend time visiting the museums at Exposition Park. http://college.usc.edu/vhi/

The Friday evening, SOHA Reception (5:30-7:30 pm) will be at the California African American Museum (CAAM) with conviviality, a taco bar, and entertainment by the Okinawa Association of America celebrating its one hundred year anniversary. Attendees will also be able to peruse three outstanding CAAM exhibits, “Black Chrome,” “A Moment in Time: Pighams Black Panthers,” and “The Visual Metaphors of Dewey Crumpler.” http://www.caam.ca.gov/

The Saturday Conference begins with an Awards Breakfast at the Radisson Hotel featuring the Mink Award and a collective discussion titled New Destinations: Life Unscripted, Los Angeles, Oral History and Technology, facilitated by Miguel Juárez, 2009 SOHA Program Chair. We then move back to the Doheny Memorial Library for a terrific mix of concurrent sessions and a buffet lunch with affinity group discussions.

Saturday night starts with a dinner break on your own with the option of continuing affinity group discussions. We then take the SOHA conference out into the community for a free program at the United University Church on campus for a program titled: “Spirited: Using Oral History in Performance with Music and Readers’ Theater.

Sunday morning we will convene again at the California African American Museum for a Business Meeting, approval of Constitution and By-Laws’ changes, election of officers, followed by two plenary sessions.

We are continuing the Silent Auction and Raffle: Started by past president, Shirley Stephenson in the 1980s, the auction and raffle funds SOHA scholarships and grants. Items will be available Friday during workshops and Saturday during sessions on the second floor of the Doheny Library. The auction and raffle close at 4:30 pm Saturday for pay and pick up. Please contact Angelica Rivera, love.education@yahoo.com, to send items before the auction or to notify her of items you plan to bring.

Regarding accommodations, we have special SOHA rates at two hotels. The main hotel is the Radisson Hotel Los Angeles Downtown at USC, 3540 S. Figueroa St., Los Angeles, CA 90007 (213-748-4141 or 866-210-4747). It is very nice with many amenities directly across from and a two block walk to Doheny Library, USC and California African American Museum. It is the site for initial registration and the Breakfast Plenary. SOHA discount: $149.00 single or double, plus taxes. Rooms are limited rooms so reserve early. The price increases after March 5th. The SOHA price is available before and after the conference. http://www.radisson.com/losangelesca_midtown

The alternate hotel is the Vagabond Inn at 3101 S. Figueroa St., Los Angeles, CA 90007, (213-746-1531 or 800-522-1555). This basic motel is a five block walk to Radisson, seven block walk to the Doheny Library, and nine blocks to the California African American Museum. The SOHA discount: $80 single, $93 double also available before and after the conference. Prices increase after February 24, 2009. http://www.vagabondinn.com/LosAngelesUSCPage/tabid/195/Default.aspx?hotel=307

The program committee, Miguel Juarez, Chair, Dionne Espinoza, Virginia R. Espino, Anna Gee, Karen S. Harper, Dalena Hunter, Angelica Rivera, Cathy Irwin, Dale Sato, Gisela Shimabukuro, Alva Moore Stevenson, Dan Killoren, First Vice-President, and Sarah Moorhead, President, ask all members to promote this terrific conference to all potential attendees. See you in Los Angeles!

SOHA Program Committee, 2009

Registration Information: http://www.southwestoralhistory.org/addl_pages/conference.html