On December 7, 2020, the SAASC hosted Bridgett Kathryn Pride, the Reference Librarian for the Manuscripts, Archives, and Rare Books Division of the Schomburg Center at the New York Public Library.
The Schomburg Library was named after Arthur Schomburg who dedicated his life to collecting “vindicating evidence” of the worthiness of black culture to be studied and collected after a teacher told him otherwise. The New York Public Library purchased Schomburg’s collections in 1926.
The Schomburg Library is organized by format with collections represented in:
- Art and Artifacts
- Moving Image and Recorded Sound
- Photographs and Print
- Jean Blackwell Hutson Research and Reference
- Manuscripts, Archives, and Rare Books
Pride developed the research guide for the Queer Studies Collections which focuses on Black LGBTQIA+ studies within the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. There are 24 collections representing the LGBTQ community at the Schomburg Center. While creating the research guides, Pride was greatly motivated by the lack of black women’s voices in the collections. Her work is guided by the principle of making black, queer voices accessible to researchers.
The SAASC would like to thank Bridgett Pride of the Schomburg Center at the New York Public Library for conducting this fascinating and informative discussion with the students of San Jose State University.
If you were unable to attend the live presentation, you can watch the event here. Remember to subscribe and let us know what you think!
We hope everyone has a safe and relaxing holiday break! See you in 2021!
**Curious about the archival profession? Consider joining the Society of American Archivists and the Society of American Archivists Student Chapter.