Wendy Lowenstein

A short documentary about pioneering oral historian Wendy Lowenstein and her involvement in the Australian folk music scene will be available for free viewing in a webinar on 8 October 2023.

Wendy Lowenstein

The 25-minute documentary ‘What Wendy found’ was produced by her children Martie and Richard Lowenstein. They are currently fundraising with a view to turning the documentary into a feature film. Wendy Lowenstein recorded interviews with over 800 everyday people from around Australia over a period of 40 years from 1965. Her interviewees told her of their struggles to obtain better working and living conditions. She not only recorded their stories but wrote about them in several books. Find out more here.

Afghanistan Women’s Stories

“A University of Texas at Arlington educator who was forced to flee Afghanistan when the Taliban regained control two years ago this month is leading an oral history project that elevates the voices of fellow Afghan women refugees. Roshan Mashal, a specialist in UTA’s Gender, Women and Sexuality Studies (GWSS) program, is co-leading The RUG Project, which recognizes the resilience of Afghan women, promotes global unity and guides efforts for social change. With support from the GWSS program, faculty members from the Department of Communication – Dustin Harp, Chyng-Yang Jang, Brian Horton and Andrew Clark – the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Mina’s List and the Afghan American Foundation, The RUG Project spotlights the stories and experiences of Afghan women refugees to guide educators, activists, policymakers and journalists working to advance women’s rights as human rights.” See full story here.

Churchill Archives Centre

“The Churchill Archives Centre is a world-leading collection of 20th century history, holding a wide-range of documents by more than 570 political, military & scientific luminary figures from the Churchill era and beyond. To mark the 50th Anniversary of The Churchill Archives Centre, we are proud to announce the launch of our free Access Portal. The website allows researchers worldwide to explore archival material shared online for the first time.” See full story here.

Australian wins 2023 Susan W. Schofield Oral History Award

In 2019, just a few months before the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, Executive Dean of Macquarie Business School Professor Eric Knight arrived at Stanford University with his wife and daughters.
As an Australian-American Fulbright Senior Scholar, he was there to investigate how American universities such as Stanford were changing the research landscape and offering a new model for the modern research university. Find out more and watch video here.

Testimony of Armenian Genocide

Over the past month, for the first time, I listened to the testimony of my late great-grandmother, Mary Antekelian, a survivor of the Armenian Genocide. The interview is an audio recording, but I could picture the conversation as if I were in the room – my grandma, Sirvard Antekelian, sitting by her mother-in-law’s side, interjecting throughout the oral history interview to make sure that Mary, then around 81, answered questions clearly and with historical accuracy. Read full story here.

First Nations Recordings Preserved

Over 150 hours of First Nations oral history and songs were at risk because the recordings were stored on obsolete tapes and discs. That was until the National Film and Sound Archive (NFSA) stepped in to preserve the incredible Central Australia Men’s Audio Collection with $270,000 funding through our Indigenous Languages and Arts program. Read full story here.

Oral History used for Historical Fiction

“Ami Polonsky’s newest book for young readers, World Made of Glass, is set in 1987 and features Iris, a 12-year-old facing her father’s death from AIDS. In an era when the president hadn’t uttered the word “AIDS,” Iris copes with her grief and anger at losing her father and the discrimination he and his friends face, and finds solace by getting involved with ACT UP, the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power.” Read full article here and see the interviews here.