Learning to thrive together in multi-ethnic and multi-religious landscapes is America’s next civil rights issue. NPL collected 67 oral histories from Latino, Somali, Laotian, Kurdish, Vietnamese, Sudanese, first-generation and other foreign-born refugees/immigrants from 30 countries in all. Their stories about adjusting to new cultures, interacting with law enforcement and schools, and daily life in a new country provide an authentic framework for community conversations about civil rights. They put real faces on, and bring a relatable feel to, complex issues. This project helped NPL build relationships with people who might not otherwise have felt comfortable sharing with a government “authority” like the library. By partnering with local immigration and refugee organizations, NPL broke down barriers and made meaningful inroads into new communities.

NPL reached deep into the community to connect with as many people as possible for this project. We trained 40 student oral history curators at Lipscomb University, who then reached out to their friends and peers. The Library also partnered with eight community organizations, including Conexion Americas and Casa de La Cultura. In all, partner organizations helped NPL conduct 65 oral history recordings. We aggressively promoted the opportunity to record oral histories through Library channels and significant earned media coverage from local news outlets. Finally, the Library hosted workshops and listening celebrations to showcase the project.

This project provided a blueprint for building curricula for local school groups and a framework for hosting open community conversations about contemporary civil rights issues. For example, NPL is working with Vanderbilt students who will use oral histories to digitally map storytellers’ journeys from their countries of origin to Nashville. This will help students think critically, spatially and globally about Nashville’s role in the world. Additionally, the community partnerships forged during this project continue to grow. For example, Casa de La Cultura recently held their graduation ceremony for graduates of their ESL and GED classes at the Main Library.