Briggs, Grandgeorge, Hinderliter – Question 3

¶ 1 Leave a comment on paragraph 1 0 The Newberry is free and open to the public, and we will make the Chicago Protest Collection available according to our normal rules of access. The digital content is already available online both within and outside of the library. The physical materials are roughly sorted, but because of size and format it will be difficult to provide access to specific items in the reading room before they are fully identified in online inventories. During the coming year we plan to make them accessible, and also to digitize the materials and link the images to the online inventory. The availability of digital images will make it easier for researchers to narrow down what pieces they want to view physically.

¶ 2 Leave a comment on paragraph 2 0 Many protest participants and donors have asked us about an exhibition of materials from the Chicago Protest Collection. We plan to use items in our upcoming scheduled exhibitions, including “What Is the Midwest?” We also hope to find the opportunity to stage a contemporary protest “pop-up” exhibit that engages both its donor audience and the general public.

¶ 3 Leave a comment on paragraph 3 0 It remains to be seen how people will use the materials and their reasons for doing so. We hope that researchers will consult the Chicago Protest Collection because it provides primary source information about grassroots responses to contemporaneous issues. Unlike the neatly summarized versions of protest events that appear in newspaper and magazine articles, the collection offers an unmediated creative record that reveals what individuals thought and why they acted. We will continue to collect organizational records and other materials that document events from the viewpoint of leaders and organizers. Hopefully what we have saved and what survives on social media and in other forums will tell a well-rounded story.