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Written histories can sometimes leave out or misinterpret cultural truths. Oral histories told from the perspective of minority groups are crucial to looking back at the trials and tribulations, historical accuracy, and legacies passed down from generation to generation.
The Mexican American Civil Rights Institute (MACRI) is ensuring that oral histories are created and preserved with its training camps on oral history.
The oral history training camps are made possible by a grant from Latinos in Heritage Conservation and the Nuestra Herencia grant program.
Sarah Zenaida Gould, MACRI’s executive director, said the training camps will teach San Antonio residents best practices for recording those histories.
“You would never ask a question, ‘don't you think …’ and then finish the question, because that is kind of telling the respondents that you already have an idea of what you think the direction of their answer should be,” said Gould.
Gould said they will also discuss the launch of its newest project, Oral History Corps.
“This will be a body of volunteers who have completed a multipart oral history training program provided by MACRI, and who collect oral histories for MACRI's archive focused on Mexican American civil rights history,” said Gould. “The oral history workshops we're currently offering are open to anyone interested in learning about oral history; however, they also serve as the ‘basic training’ to qualify for the Oral History Corps.”
Gould said requirements for the corps will be shared at the workshops.
“We’re hoping this year to launch our group of volunteers who have been trained (and) can record oral histories for our archive,” said Gould.
The training camps garnered so much response that the one on Jan. 24 filled up quickly. But the chance for inclement weather may require it to be rescheduled. Spots for the Saturday, Feb. 7 workshop at 10 a.m. filled up as of this publication.
Follow MACRI on social media for the latest updates.
