Out in the Valley: Southern Oregon LGBTQ+ Histories
Using historical objects, documents, and photographs from the SOHS Collection as “breadcrumbs”, Dr. Anna Sloan will explore expressions of LGBTQ+ life, identity, community, and resilience in Southern Oregon over the past 150+ years. Learn how the western frontier made space for some settlers’ alternative gender and sexual identities, while simultaneously erasing Indigenous expressions of the same. Explore how changing social mores of the early 20th century affected peoples’ lives and livelihoods. Hear more recent stories of local LGBTQ+ community-building, meaning-making, artistry, and resilience, even in the face of discrimination and violence. Sloan will also share the latest updates from SOHS on efforts to integrate more of these stories into the permanent collection — and why this task is as challenging as it is important.