Category Archives: Announcements

RESCHEDULED DATE: Bayou City Policing History Harvest Day, June 1st 10am-2pm

UPDATE: The Bayou City Policing History Harvest Day has a new time and date, with a revised schedule.

New rescheduled time and date: June 1st, 10 am to 2 pm.

Scanning and Digitization of Artifacts and Collecting Oral Histories: 10 am to 1 pm

Film followed by Q&A- Un Trip: raúlrsalinas and The Poetry of Liberation at 1 pm.

You are invited to come share your stories at the Bayou City Policing – History Harvest Day at the Leonel J. Castillo Community Center. A history harvest is an event devoted to recording and preserving the records of the community. In this case, we encourage you to bring your stories, photographs, newspaper clippings, and personal artifacts from your family records. This History Harvest aims to collect stories and artifacts about the historical relationship between Mexican American/Latinx communities and the Houston Police Department. Our hope is to collect stories that emphasize instances of conflict and cooperation.

Select recorded interview excerpts and scans from the Harvest will be included within the organizers’ digital repository. Once scanned, the original photos and documents will be returned to the patron. In addition, high-quality scans of the artifacts will be provided to community members to reproduce prints and preserve the original photos/documents.

In partnership with the Recovering the US Hispanic Literary Heritage, the Collective of Progressive Educators (COPE), and Mario A. Salinas at the Leonel Castillo Community Center, we are inviting la gente de Houston to come and share your stories and experiences. the door is open to the community, activists, students, educators, archivists, researchers, advocates, and law enforcement. We will also be screening Raúl r salinas and the Poetry of Liberation Documentary Film followed by a Q&A with the Austin-based filmmakers.

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History Harvest Background June 1st (dragged) - Carlos Cantu History Harvest Background June 1st (dragged) 2 - Carlos Cantu

Nominations open for 2024 THRAB Archival Awards

Do you know an outstanding archivist, archive, or related organization? Nominate them for the 2024 THRAB Archival Awards!

These annual awards honor archival institutions, programs, and individuals in Texas for their service to the profession. The Texas Historical Records Advisory Board grants awards in the categories of excellence, advocacy, and distinguished service. Nominations will be accepted through June 20. Learn more: www.tsl.texas.gov/archivalaward

TARO April 2024 News and Notes on TARO Today!

TARO April 2024 News and Notes are up on TARO Today! Catch up with TARO, get ready for the TARO Brown Bag at the Society of Southwest Archivists (SSA) Virtual Annual Meeting, and consider volunteering for a committee.

https://sites.utexas.edu/taro/2024/04/23/taro-april-2024-news-and-notes/

TARO (Texas Archival Resources Online) makes descriptions of the rich archival, manuscript, and museum collections in repositories across the state available to the public. The site consists of the collection descriptions or “finding aids” that archives, libraries, and museums create to assist users in locating information in their collections.  Explore TARO at https://txarchives.org.

Slide graphic announcing AHA! 2024 Program Schedule. We are busy filling out the year with events, professional development opportunities, repository tours, and get-togethers. # View the schedule on houstonarchivists.org. Leave a comment in the spreadsheet if you have any questions or suggestions.

2024 AHA! Program Schedule

The 2024 programming schedule is available.

We are busy filling out the year with events, professional development opportunities, repository tours, and get-togethers all over the Houston and Southeast TX area. We’ve already had 2 events this year and planning many more. Hope to see y’all soon!

See the Schedule

Leave a comment in the spreadsheet if you have any questions or suggestions.

Donate $3 & Get a Glitter Sticker

✨Back by popular demand!✨ Our “Old, Weird Houston” stickers have been re-issued in a special glitter edition. These went quickly at our event at The Orange Show back in April!

  • Get yours by donating $3 dollars or more.
  • Stickers are 3in x 3in, are durable and weather resistant with a glittering look but none of the mess of actual glitter! These will look good on your laptop or even car bumper.
  • Donate through our Square store. Once your donation has been received, the Treasurer will contact you by Email for your shipping information.
  • To donate visit: https://houstonarchivists.square.site/

TLA Call for Program Proposals for 2021 Annual Conference

TLA is currently accepting program proposals for their 2021 annual conference being held in San Antonio, April 20-23.   

The Texas Library Association (TLA) is the largest state library association in the U.S. It’s 6,000+ members represent all library types: academic, public, school and special. The TLA Annual Conference features hundreds of sessions and events each year. We welcome and encourage program proposals from individuals, both TLA members and non-members, and from other organizations. The 2021 conference theme is Celebrate Differences, Empower Voices, and TLA invites you to submit your program proposals. 

TLA accepts program proposals from May 1 to July 15, 2020 to be considered for the 2021 conference. 

2021 TLA Program Proposals Form

 

AHA! Statement in Support of Protests and Anti-Racist Practices

Today is filled with sadness and heartbreak for the family and friends of George Floyd, the City of Houston, and communities around the world.

We join the Society of Southwest Archivists and the Society of American Archivists in “condemning the continued racist acts of violence committed against members of our Black communities across the country.” We acknowledge the “systemic racism and white supremacy that has been a part of United States government since its founding, and as archivists, we know the historical evidence bears witness to the legacy of oppression, violence, and death that structural racism has imposed on Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian, and other communities of color. When it comes to perpetuating institutional racism and white supremacist culture, archives are no exception.”(1, 2)

We understand “no one owes their trauma to archivists,”(3) and we urge ethical documentation in times of crisis.(4, 5)

We support Houstonians’ right to peacefully protest and demand policy reform, justice, and equal treatment under the law; and we believe Black Lives Matter.

Please consider attending SAA Community Reflection on Black Lives and Archives this Friday, June 12 at 2:00 pm CST. Documenting the Now is looking for archivists and other memory workers who are willing to share their time, resources, and expertise to help activists document police violence. You may volunteer here.

We invite you to share any words of solace and healing by replying individually to houstonarchives@gmail.com and we will compile them to send a card to the family of George Floyd.

Archivists of the Houston Area Board

—
References:
1-SOCIETY OF SOUTHWEST ARCHIVISTS STATEMENT CONDEMNING RACIAL VIOLENCE
2- SAA Council Statement on Black Lives and Archives
3-No one owes their trauma to archivists, or, the commodification of contemporaneous collecting
4-Documenting in Times of Crisis: A Resource Kit
5-The Blackivists’ Five Tips for Organizers, Protestors, and Anyone Documenting Movements

 

AHA! Recommends Closure of Houston Libraries and Archives

Archivists of the Houston Area (AHA!) recommends that libraries and archival institutions in the Houston area cease public operations in adherence with national and local guidelines regarding the spread of COVID-19 and in solidarity with national, regional, and local professional organizations and ensure fair compensation for staff during the ongoing situation.

We commend the libraries and archival institutions that have closed in order to protect our communities from the spread of COVID-19, follow social distancing guidelines intended to “flatten the curve,” and, we hope, save lives.

Nationally, the United States Government and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommend social distancing measures and working from home whenever possible. Locally, the City of Houston also recommends working from home whenever possible, avoiding gatherings of over 10 people, and avoiding discretionary travel. The Society of American Archivists also urges leaders and administrators to act swiftly to close archival institutions and support employees in work from home plans stating, “the valued labor of archivists is not more important than the health of the people doing that work.”

AHA! recommends the SAA Accessibility & Disability section’s “Archivists at Home” document to assist in devising work from home plans and tasks for archivists and staff. If you are concerned about the effect of COVID-19 on your workplace status, income, or access to sick time and family leave time, please consider filling out the Contingent Archival Workers and COVID-19  anonymous survey. SAA has also created a resource page to help the archives community navigate this global health crisis.

Stay safe and healthy,

AHA! Board