Illuminations:  Uncrowned Queens Institute Media Productions

Uncrowned Queens and the Use of Media in Historical and Cultural Preservation

Since 1999 the Uncrowned Queens Institute webpage featuring the narratives and photos of hundreds of African American women and men identified as Community Builders by their friends, family and colleagues has built an award winning webpage at www.uncrownedqueens.com;  established a digital mechanism to collect, preserve and disseminate these narratives and photos; established a publishing company at Uncrowned Queens Publishing and published three volumes on Western New York women: Uncrowned Queens: African American Women Community Builders of Western New York  and a fourth volume of African American women in Oklahoma entitled, Uncrowned Queens: African American Women Community Builders of Oklahoma, 1907-2007 was completed in 2007 and is being sold across Oklahoma.  Photos of the book covers can also be found on the web-page.  A primary goal of the Institute is the nationalization of our efforts so that African American women and men across the country can begin to research, collect and disseminate their stories through the Uncrowned Queens Community Builders® Network.

In addition to myriad other activities, the Institute has long been interested in the power of media and the need to harness this power for historical and cultural preservation.  To this end, the Institute has launched a number of media projects including:

Illuminations: Uncrowned Queens Community Builders - a one half hour television program, produced by  the Uncrowned Queens co-founders and focusing the  spotlight on the community building  activities of Uncrowned Queens and Kings.  The program airs weekly and is co-produced by Drs. Nevergold and Bertram, who are also the hosts. 

Uncrowned Queens, Voices from the Community: In partnership with the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the Western New York Public Broadcasting Association, the Institute is developing a local, and later a national program, featuring the stories of Uncrowned Queens in their own voice.  This program is a brain child of the Uncrowned Queens Institute and is designed to “engage African Americans as committed listeners and supporters” of national public radio.  Broadcasting will begin in September 2008.

Uncrowned Queens, Oral History Interviews:  In 2004, the Institute received funding from the Educational Technology Center of the University at Buffalo to conduct a pilot, oral history project.  A main feature of this project is the beginning of a collection of oral histories from Uncrowned Queens in the Buffalo and Western New York area. These histories include interviews with Uncrowned Queens Thelma Hardiman, Georgia Burnette, Gwendolyn Greene, Garnett Wallace,  Eva Noles and others.  This project has established the foundation for a larger, more extended program, including providing instruction in oral history research and its application to digital literacy.

Uncrowned Queens, Audio/Video Repository:  The Institute maintains a collection of audio and video tapes that feature Uncrowned Kings and Queens beginning in Western New York and across the country.  They also feature key events in the programs of the Institute including the Oklahoma Centennial Celebration, the Tulsa Race Riot Expunging of the criminal records of A.J. Smitherman and fifty-five other African American men in Oklahoma; the Mary Crosby Chappelle 100th Birthday Celebration; the Institute international conferences and numerous other educational events.