No Longer Absent Series (Pt. 2)

Black Mirror

Carmen Lizardo | Kingston, New York, USA 

Leslie W. Dunlap in his 1944 Ph.D. dissertation, American Historical Societies: 1790-1860, documents how early historical societies were predominant - ly interested in published materials: manuscripts and newspapers. He writes, “Perhaps the most valuable collections of the historical societies were local and ephemeral publications.” The preference for published material combined with a bias for the records of power and authority meant that the history of those with little money and social standing went undocumented. When marginalized people do show up in these collections, it is often only in the records of those people with power over them.

See next collage for more…