• Source: The OUTWORDS Archive

The Outwords Archive (OUTWORDS) records and archives on-camera interviews with elders from the LGBTQ+ community throughout the United States. The archive headquarters are based in Los Angeles, with the entirety of their digital collection provided to the public for free through their official website. The nonprofit's stated mission is to "capture, preserve, and share the stories of LGBTQIA2S+ elders, to build community and catalyze social change."




History


Inspired by the Shoah Foundation's Visual History Archive of interviews with Holocaust witnesses and survivors, documentary TV and film producer Mason Funk established OUTWORDS in 2016. Half-day interviews are conducted on high-definition digital video by film crews, primarily in the homes of interview subjects. Interviewees have included lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, two spirit, and intersex individuals, as well as representatives of various sub-communities of the LGBTQ+ community including drag queens, leather daddies, lesbian separatists, and allies. Most interviewees are over 70 years old.
In May 2018, OUTWORDS received a Creator Award in the Community Giver category from the co-working company WeWork. In May 2019, HarperCollins published the first compilation of OUTWORDS interviews, entitled The Book of Pride, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots. At the same time, OUTWORDS released a searchable digital platform which makes video interviews and historical photos freely available to the public.
In June 2023, OUTWORDS opened their first museum exhibit, "Coming Out West: LGBTQ+ Elders Share Their Stories", in collaboration with the Santa Monica History Museum. In 2024, select OUTWORDS interviews were featured in the exhibit, "Hello Auntie, Hello Uncle: Conversations with our Elders", at the Wing Luke Museum and in the permanent digital exhibit, "Hidden Histories: Discovering Los Angeles' LGBTQ+ Collections", curated by the ONE Archives at UCLA.




Interviews


As of August 2024, OUTWORDS had recorded on-camera oral histories with over 350 LGBTQIA2S+ elders in 45 states. Interviewees have included:




Publications


The Book of Pride: LGBTQ Heroes Who Changed the World, (HarperCollins, May 2019), ISBN 978-0-0625-7170-0




See also


LGBT History
Mattachine Society
One Institute
ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives
Lesbian Herstory Archives
Tretter Archives
Digital Transgender Archive
Transgender Oral History Project




References






External links


Official website

Kata Kunci Pencarian:

• The OUTWORDS Archive
• Nancy Nangeroni
• Crystal LaBeija
• Asian/Pacific Gays and Friends
• Elizabeth Coffey
• The Book of Pride
• List of people with post-traumatic stress disorder
• Jewel Thais-Williams
• Bruce Bastian
• Gilberto Gerald