How can I sign up to participate in this project?

The digital link to our online submission form goes live in 2023! Stay tuned for more updates on in-person activations and pop-ups!

I’m not Black but I love nature and the South. Can I share my story?

Thank you for your passion but this is a project first and foremost to capture Black perspectives. We encourage non-Black allies — including other people of color — to share the form with their Black friends.

What will happen to all of the answers that are collected?

All interviews will be transcribed by theme and geography, and packaged in multiple formats including zines and family reunion style books. All interviews will be open-data for Black people to explore both domestically and internationally. We believe everyone should have access to our history from our own perspective.

This seems pretty ambitious. Has something like this ever been done before?

This oral history project will build upon models like Born in Slavery: Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1938 with a specific focus on agrarian strategies/practices, relationships to land, and Black sustainability. At the conclusion of the Slave Narrative project, a set of edited transcripts was assembled and microfilmed in 1941 as the seventeen-volume Slave Narratives: A Folk History of Slavery in the United States from Interviews with Former Slaves. The project contains more than 2,300 first-person accounts of slavery and 500 black-and-white photographs of formerly enslaved people.

My interview skills are pretty undeveloped. Where do I start?

Don’t worry, we have you covered! There is an interview toolkit that will equip you with the necessary tools to engage with your elders. It’ll include tech tips, And please remember, we’re not looking for perfection, capturing your ancestors’ stories with reverence and love is the only true requirement.

Will submissions only be captured digitally?

No! This project will be capturing responses through a number of means- including event activations, HBCU pop-ups, and The Call an Elder Campaign! We’d love to see you in-person but created a digital form so we can have the most submissions possible.

Are there still opportunities to partner with The Black Land Papers?

Please email info@theblacklandpapers.com to discuss our wide range of partnership and sponsorship opportunities. We’d love to work with you!