History Now: The Pandemic Diaries Project
Focus
Any personal or group experience related to COVID-19 – which of course touches on dozens of additional topics from work and industry to family and education to social justice and activism and much more.
History
The project was a part of the New York Public Library’s multi-pronged approach to collection development amid one of the most historically significant but fracturing moments in most of our lifetimes. The NYPL specifically sought on-the-ground stories of underrepresented people to counter prevailing and polarized narratives that predominated news cycles. The goal of the project was to solicit the stories of as many people as possible to capture a diversity of experience and to build an archive that told a collective narrative of tragedy, grief, and resilience.
Collection
To date (Dec. 2020), we have collected 91 audio files and associated metadata.
Form of Collection
Audio files (predominantly mp3s and m4as) and associated metadata.
Emphasis
While as an institution we have a particular interest in documenting New York City, we place no limitations on who may participate in Pandemic Diaries except for age; participants must be 18 or older.
Time Period
Our project launched in August 2020 and is ongoing.
Public Access
Not yet, but once the collection is closed, accessioned, and processed, it will be made available on NYPL Digital Collections.
Director
New York Public Library
Contact Person
Julie Golia, Curator of History, Social Sciences, and Government Information at the New York Public Library
Email: juliegolia@nypl.org
Telephone number: (W) 212-930-0094 (M)646-335-5541