CUIN 6397 - Practicum in IT, Summer 2006
In Class 4 (on June 20th), we participated in an oral history workshop that included a discussion by UH history professor, Dr. Joe Pratt. Dr. Pratt is the editor of the Houston Review of History and Culture, and workshop participants received two issues of this journal.
For this discussion, you are being asked to read at least one article in the journal that you feel has some relationship to the work you're doing on the Dawn Installation project.
Then, post a comment in which you describe the material you read (be sure to include the name of the article you selected, which issue it was in, who wrote it, what the main themes were, etc.) and discuss how what you learned from the article might be used in the design and development of the project component you are working on this summer.
posted by Bernard Robin @ 7:45 AM
7 comments
7 Comments:
I read the article about Thelma Scott Bryant in the Fall 2003 issue of "The Houston Review of History and Culture" (Thelma Scott Bryant: Memories of a Century in Houston's Third Ward, Tomkins-Walsh, p. 48-58).
A few of us will be interviewing Ms. Bryant on Monday, so that we may include her oral history on our Dawn website. Instead of the interview being written, it will, instead, be an audio, as well as a video, interview. That way, we will be able to hear her voice as she narrates her life story.
The article about Ms. Bryant helped me to gain understanding of her life. She grew up in the thriving community of the 3rd ward. She has been a member of the 3rd ward community for almost a hundred years. She was born in her parents' home. After she was married, she and her husband built their own home in the 3rd Ward, where she still resides today.
It is amazing that we will be able to speak with her face-to-face. She will be able tell us first hand how the 3rd Ward was back when there was no running water or paved streets, as well as how it has changed over the last almost 100 years. The article made me realize that Ms. Bryant grew up much like any other young woman grew up in a middle class household in Houston--except her community was segregated from other communities in Houston based on race. Other than that, her activities, interests, and dreams were like any other young person's, and she was able to realize them even through the challenges of segregation and racism.
She has been active in the community, church, and education system which makes her an important voice of the history of the 3rd Ward. It will benefit our site to have her as a primary source of information because she will help give an identity, voice, and "face" to our walking tour. I hope that through her words, voice, and image, visitors to the site will better understand the 3rd Ward community, its residents, and its deeply interesting history.
Being a huge sports fan, I chose to read the article about Elvin Hayes and Hakeem Olajuwon, Two Paths to Greatness: Elvin Hayes and Hakeem Olajuwon Come to Houston by Katherine Lopez in the fall 2005 issue of "The Houston Review of History and Culture.”
This article presented experiences and decisions that Elvin and Hakeem encountered that I could not relate to personally. Elvin’s story did, provide me with insight into what it might have been like to leave the comfort and security of his home and family in order to be one of two athletes to integrate the University of Houston.
These two extremely gifted and talented men embraced what our great city and university had to offer. They were able to use their gifts and talents to elevate the athletic programs in our city to new heights.
I think that both of these men have given back tremendously to a city that welcomed them with open arms. They have been some of the first ones to share the positive impact that “immigrating” to Houston had on their lives.
Personally, I am grateful that they both took the risk and stepped outside their comfort zones to seek their education and play basketball at the University of Houston and later for the Rockets as well.
Both of these men have been and still are strong supporters and advocates for our community. They are two cougars who we can be very proud of and furthermore, I think that we can be proud of our city as it continues to welcome any and all that come to participate in all it has to offer.
I think that it would be very powerful to interview Elvin Hayes and see if he would share his story of integrating into the university. Additionally, I think it would be interesting to see what impact attending school near the 3rd Ward had on his life after relocating to Houston.
I read the article entitled, "The Trailblazers Who Guide Me" by Patricia Smith Prather. This article is found in The Houston Review of History and Culture, Fall 2003, p. 64-66.
The article addresses how Ms. Prather has become a historian through the motivation of wanting to pay tribute to her ancestors. Ancestors and others who helped influence her growing up in Houston, Texas.
Growing up Ms. Prather noticed there were not "people who looked like us" featured in history books. Because of the lack of African American history featured while growing up, Ms. Prather and peers looked to community leaders as a source of modeling and influence.
Ms. Prather indicates how in 1977, with the publishing of "Roots", that this was the first time she realized the potential of researching and bringing the history of African Americans in Texas to life. Ms. Prather set out interviewing and documenting the lives of elders in her community, the Fifth Ward. She published articles in The Houston Chronicle which led to a featured series.
As Ms. Prather uncovered more and more history, she began extending her work to more publications. In 1990, she co-founded The Texas Trailblazer Preservation Association. An association dedicated to formal historical research.
Ms. Prather describes how researching and putting together histories can be tedious work. However the outcome motivates her to tell the history of her ancestors and community members whom never had the opportunity to tell their story.
I think this article is poignant to our class in that it emphasizes the importance of making available the history of a community. A history that has been unknown and unavailable to the community members of the 3rd Ward, not to mention the impact the communities' history has had on the whole state of Texas.
I read the article about Daniel Galvan titled "A Long Road to Houston: An Interview with Daniel Galvan" in the Houston Review Volume 3, Number 1 (Fall 2005)
This article was very interesting and I decided to read it to get a better understanding of what life would be like as an undocumented worker in the USA. After reading the article I was rather ashamed for any complaining I do. The incredibly hard life that Daniel Galvan had makes my life look very very easy.
At first I struggled with how this article would help me with my project. But then I realized that my struggle was the perfect way to try to approach my project. My project is to make a short video about Thelma Bryant and I am going to try to approach the video to show her struggle for Civil Rights and how in the end she turned out to have a good life and is still a very nice and happy person at 100 years old.
Brian
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I chose In Search of Freedom: Black migration to Houston in 1914-1945, in the fall 2005 issue of ‘The Houston Review of History and Culture.’ by Bernadette Puitt,
In reading this article, I realized the connections that exist between the migration of blacks to Houston and the Third Ward community. It seems like the mix of reasons for seeking a better life in Houston at that time has affected the third ward until today. The struggle of the community to provide for its members still continues with the Young Mother’s program. Thousands of migrants come to Houston every year and many have other reasons for doing so. But for thousands of African Americans who migrated to Houston from the rural surrounding areas of Texas and other states, Houston offered a better solution to their deteriorating social and economic conditions. Some saw an opportunity to protest injustice of their economic backwardness; some sort to alleviate the harsh socioeconomics in the rural areas. There were limited but better opportunities for education, social standards, and economic advancement for their children in Houston.
The article tells a complex story about the existing study of black migration: its components include self-determination, racial separation, and a search for inner peace. All of these issues seem intact in the third ward and in other communities in Houston. There were stories about family ties and friendship. Even though some of the children of that generation may have moved out of third ward, their parents, uncles, nieces, aunts might still have homes in the third ward which forces them to maintain family and community ties with the third ward. So the migration in effect still continues today.
In the design and develop of the third ward, I thought about the family ties and community friendship: the children that have moved away from home and those who want to move away to attend college and have a better perspective of their lives. I think about the churches that have held this community of migrants together. Ironically, while this migration took place in a short period, the effects and impact of it, is an extended story that will go on beyond third ward. There is a social and economic transformation from poverty to an open door to progress that is yet to be fully captured. The evidence of past and modern living has merged to tell a different story. The different views of third ward from different perspectives represent another migration story.
Some basic issues will remain true in design especially with the culture and current living conditions based on what I see. There is a frustration with marginal existence, the call for new and better jobs, the search for new areas of self-awareness, social consciousness, and future aspirations these are all aspects of what can be related in the history of third ward. This involves other aspects of the community’s connections with schools and Houston.
The article I read was in The Houston Review of History and Culture, Fall 2003, Volume 1, Number 1. The title was, Changing Lives and Making Policy: The Houston Women's Causus for Art 1978 - 1988, by MaryRoss Taylor. I think this article provides information that could be used to support lessons on art as well as women's history. Students could compare the actions of suffragettes to what this caucus accomplished. They could also use it to create a timeline on women's art in Houston and include photos of some of the artwork. More obviously, they could analyze the works of male and female artists and provide their opinions about the origins of any similarities or differences. This article is a resource that can be used to look at culture, politics, gender issues and art, with a critical eye and would be good for just about any age level with proper modification.
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