Regional History Project
https://library.ucsc.edu/regional-history-project
Guide to oral history research and resources:
https://guides.library.ucsc.edu/oralhist?hs=a
Oral History Association:
Irene Reti
Sample Oral History Questions
What kind of work/job do you do in the world?
Is there a key moment in our life where you made a decision to take a different path?
What historical movements (feminist, environmental, Jewish Renewal, peace etc.) have influenced you. How have you contributed to them?
With whom are you creating community/connection/family?
Where were you born? What place(s), geographic location(s) did you grow up in?
What was the natural environment like?
What was your family's economic background, class?
What body did you inherit from your family/ancestors?
What kinds of illness or disability are part of you?
What emotional legacy did you inherit from your family/ancestors?
Which people have been the dominant influences in your life?
Who or what has influenced you intellectually?
What is the spiritual/religious history of your family?
What are the silences, erasures, suppressions in your family? What stories are not remembered, not told?
How has your life affected Jewish history and how has Jewish history affected your life?
Is there a particular ancestor who acts as your spiritual guide?
How have you passed on your spiritual wisdom?
How is your history changing/transforming; what is being born in you?
What are the stories you carry?
Say one of the names you have carried in your life and tell a story about that name.
Can the silences in your life be transformed into resources for your spiritual journey?
What history have you been a spiritual witness to?
Do you think you have had or will have an influence on history, and if so, how?
Santa Cruz, CA
