Skip to primary menu Skip to main content Skip to footer content

Oral History Programs

The National Public Housing Museum believes that storytelling is a potent social and civic tool. We strive to harness the power of narrative for
social impact through our Oral History Programs. We embrace oral history as an accessible and adaptable history-making practice for all ages
and backgrounds.

Learning Justice-Centered Oral History

meeting-1
Program

The Beauty Turner Academy of Oral History

The Beauty Turner Academy strives to diversify the workforce of historians, documentarians, and memory workers by providing accessible oral and narrative history training to current and former public housing residents. We envision a world where residents are empowered to document, preserve, share, and celebrate narrative histories from their perspectives—the people who call public housing home.

Lies will lean, tumble, and fall, but the truth will continue to stand tall amidst the demolition of public housing.

Ms. Beauty Turner, c. 2008
BT-w_Carole-Wallace_for-OH-Programs

Public Oral History Archive

  • A young Danté sits at a desk, reviewing notes from a yellow legal pad. He is wearing a brown shirt and white vest.
    Interview

    E. Dantés Hamilton

    Listen to Mr. Danté, a member of NPHM’s E-Hub, reflect on his time at Garden Valley Estates Public Housing in Cleveland, OH.
  • Copy of Pegues, Janetta_Bio Photo with Roz Warren
    Interview

    Janetta Pegues

    Listen to Janetta reflect on her time in “The Village,” aka ABLA Homes.
  • Listen to a captivating oral history from Dr. Timuel Black, historian and activist.
    Interview

    Dr. Timuel Black Interview 1

    Listen to Dr. Timuel Black reflect on his life, from his birth in Birmingham, AL, to growing up in Chicago and his career as an oral historian.

Activating the Archive

  • Out of the Archives Sq_November2022
    Podcast series

    Out of the Archives Podcast Series

    Our flagship oral history-based podcast shares the stories and voices of public housing residents from across the country. Out of the Archives includes more than 20 episodes, organized by 3 seasons, each showcasing a different curatorial approach, including episodes curated around a unique theme such as sports and recreation or entrepreneurship; as well as more free-form approaches; and even select redux episodes that remix past episodes with additional historical context.
  • a+floor+plan+for+the+heart+as+home+(9) 1
    Blog Collage

    A floor plan for the heart: The Beauty Turner Academy 2023 Mixtape

    What comes to mind when asked the question, “What does home mean to you?”? Written, produced, and edited by Cosmo, jellystone, and Nedra, the first cohort of Beauty Turner Academy Archive & Activate Apprentices, this is a floor plan for the heart.

Oral History Resources

  • Care Resource

    Trauma Informed Care & Aftercare

    Oral history interviews sometimes venture into painful areas of one’s life story. This is all the more common for narrators who hold marginalized identities. Check out these resources and tips for conducting interviews with a trauma-informed lens, from Beauty Turner Academy graduate Ammie Kae Brooks and Educational Coordinator Noor Alzamami.
  • The cover page of the workbook for the Beauty Turner Academy of Oral History. The background is a cream sepia color, with the academy logo in blue, orange, and black. A high rise public housing building in black and gray is on the right side and an overlay collage of journal writing and a scene of two people walking on the grounds of public housing on the bottom left.
    Learning Resource

    BTA Workbook

    Download the full Beauty Turner Academy of Oral History Training Workbook! In it, you’ll find resources and exercises to begin or deepen your memory work practice. Developed and printed after our first full cohort (2023).
  • Mr. Larry Turner reviews the release form and other paperwork before starting his oral history interview with Troy Gaston, who is preparing, and Liú Chen (who is taking the photo). Larry is wearing a red striped shirt and has a friend sitting next to him; Troy is wearing a Green Roosevelt University shirt.
    Oral History Resource

    Policies, Best Practices, & Beyond

    Our archival policies and best practices and steered, shaped, and written by a Working Group of public housing residents and close community members, many of whom have been trained in oral history at NPHM. Learn more about how these polices and practices shape the archive.

Meet our Oral History Collective, Mentors, Educators, and Advisors

The Oral History Programs are generously supported by the Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Contact Us

Please email NPHM Oral History Programs Manager, Liú Chen, with any questions, concerns, or if you’re interested in getting involved.

Email Us Today

The logos of the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities.