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    Troy Gaston

    Content Warnings: overt racism, sexual violence

    Audio Quality Notes: Some interference present that briefly makes audio unclear

    At a Glance

    Public Housing Residency: Robert Taylor Homes

    Themes: Community, education, living conditions, Black women, Black men, poverty

    Content Warnings: overt racism, sexual violence

    Primary time periods: 1989–2008

    Primary locations: Chicago, South side

    Keywords: living conditions, Black men, Black women, bucket boys, building service work, displacement, gentrification, education, bias, poverty, survival, structural genocide

    Descriptive Context

    Interview Summary

    Content Warnings: overt racism, sexual violence

    In this Oral history Troy discusses being a resident of Robert Taylor Homes beginning in 1989 until 2008.  He discusses the conditions of the buildings, the strong community and what he believes to be some underlying causes of aggression and violence at Robert Taylor Homes. 

    About the Narrator

    Narrator Full Name: Troy Gaston

    Narrator pronouns: None

    Refer to as: None

    Self-identified race and/or ethnicity: Black, African American

    Biographical Context:

    A Chicago son, Robert Taylor Homes served as Troy Gaston’s initial teacher. Gaston sees his role as a learner and advocate as an opportunity to meticulously craft a narrative that highlights the humanity of individuals facing environmental and housing injustices. With a focus on transforming his learned lessons into actionable ideas, Gaston aspires to make a meaningful impact and bring about positive change in people’s lives.

     

    Describe one of your dreams.

    “I dream about being writing stories that are not told often.”

    Life Dates:
    • Birth: 1982
    About the Interview

    Interviewer: Shakira Johnson

    Date of Interview: 2021-03-22

    Method of Interview: remote

    Location of Interview: Chicago, IL

    Language: English

    Duration: None

    Formats Available: None

    Audio Quality and other notes: Some interference present that briefly makes audio unclear

    Post-Production by: adenike phillips

    Contextual Information Last Updated: None

    Time-Stamped Index
    Access and Use Guidelines

    Access Level: public

    Rights Overview:

    Each oral history interview is considered to be co-created, ‘joint work’ among the oral historian, narrator, and, in this case, the National Public Housing Museum.

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    • Credits the co-creators (Attribution), and
    • Does not make money from the usage (Non-Commercial). 
      Narrators also have the option to apply a No-Derivatives License to their interview(s), meaning that the public is forbidden from adapting the work. These works are published under an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 Deed).

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    Citation Guidelines:

    When using an interview from the NPHM Oral History Archive, use the narrator’s full name the first time you reference them. Use the narrator’s “Refer to As” name in additional mentions of their name. 

    Please use the following formatting when citing the interview in academic settings:

    Bibliography Example

    Pegues, Janetta Sue. Interviewed by Francesco De Salvatore. National Public Housing Museum Oral History Archive, [insert URL], recorded June 18, 2018, accessed June 2, 2024: pp. 10-15.

    Bibliography Format

    [NarratorFullName in Last, First Middle order]. Interviewed by [InterviewerFullName in First Middle Last Order]. National Public Housing Museum Oral History Archive, [insert URL], recorded [write out full date of interview], accessed [write out full date of most recent access]: pp. [pages of transcript cited]. 

    Footnote Example

    Janetta Sue Pegues, interviewed by Francesco De Salvatore, National Public Housing Museum Oral History Archive, [insert URL], recorded June 18, 2018, accessed June 2, 2024: pp. 10-15. 

    Footnote Form

    [NarratorFullName in First Middle Last Order], interviewed by [InterviewerFullName in First Middle Last Order] National Public Housing Museum Oral History Archive, [insert URL], recorded [write out full date of interview], accessed [write out full date of most recent access]: pp. [pages of transcript cited]. 

    Transcript and Supplemental Attachments
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