Collaborative Practices for Archiving Farmworker Communities’ Histories

Academic library archives provide a historical record that should mirror the experiences of all citizens in order to inform social progress. The COVID pandemic highlighted how essential farmworkers stories are mostly hidden from academic libraries. In this project, the University of Florida and University of Miami are partnering with two community organizations who offer support to the rural poor: the Farmworker Association of Florida and the Rural Women’s Health Project. Listening to our partners, librarians offer archival expertise and resources to preserve and make accessible the experiences, publications, and outreach of these community support organizations. Accomplishments to date include 10 oral histories, portrait and community events photographs, librarian participation in volunteer service, formation of a national advisory board, and development of an archival survey. Processes developed respect privacy and enable various levels of sharing and re-use of material created and collected, determined by the community partners. Deliverables will include training materials and a best practices guide for use by other libraries. The project helps build a sustainable future where academic libraries are engaged with their communities, particularly highlighting stories of minoritized, misunderstood, and misrepresented people.