2009 Grant Project

Japanese American Confinement Sites Grant Program

 FY 2009 GRANT PROJECT SUMMARIES

ARIZONA  Grant Recipient:  Poston Community Alliance, Inc

Project Title:  "Saving the Stories: Oral Histories & Digitization of Former Poston Detainees & Staff "

Grant Award:  $25,994

Project Summary: 

Understanding the value & power of oral histories, the  Poston Community Alliance has undertaken an effort to collect & digitize oral histories of former detainees from the Poston Internment Camp on the Colorado River Indian Tribes Reservation.   

Awarded funds of $25,994 will assist in the preservation of these stories for future research & interpretation.  

Using the latest recording technology, this project will digitize video footage onto DVDs, transcribe the interviews, and archive the audio & video material at the San Diego Japanese American Historical Society & the Alliance.  

After completing the interviews, the Alliance will identify emergent themes & patterns within the oral histories through a comprehensive data analysis. Also, the Alliance will archive, interpret, & manage a collection of photographs, memorabilia, artwork & other surviving documents donated by former detainees of the Poston Internment Camp.  

Working in collaboration with the Colorado River Indian Tribes, the Alliance hopes to one day build a museum and archive to house the physical recordings and artifacts.  

These oral histories will be made accessible to the public for future research, interpretation, & the development of documentaries.