Project Spotlight: Linda's Oral History of DVRP

We are so excited to share that former MSW intern Linda is working on an oral history of DVRP! Learn more about Linda and her project below ✨

Meet Linda

My name is Linda Kuo (she/her), and I’m very happy to share with you an oral history project I’m developing with DVRP! This project aims to document the story of DVRP, our community, and ~30 years of work supporting A/PI survivors across the DMV. This is an exciting opportunity to trace our history since DVRP’s founding in 1995 by a group of aunties who recognized a critical gap in services for A/PI survivors.

As a former Master of Social Work intern with DVRP, I’ve developed precious relationships with the team and grew to understand the needs of A/PI survivors and community members on a deeper level. There is a strong wish for documentation of the organization’s story; to preserve the work being done and to contribute to anti-violence initiatives in the A/PI community. I’m approaching this process with deep sincerity and enthusiasm, in curiosity and commitment around qualitative research and community storytelling. My MSW thesis is looking into culturally-specific service delivery in the DMV, and the oral history interviews we are collecting will be so essential in exploring such questions.

Oral History & Preserving DVRP's Story

Oral history is a collaborative method of gathering, preserving, and interpreting personal memories through in-depth interviews. These interviews with DVRP’s current and former team members, board leaders, and community partners will be publicly accessible at the People’s Archive at DC Public Libraries next year. Through this connection with DC Libraries, I hope that current and future local residents would be able to learn more about DVRP and raise culturally-specific programs as a resource, promoting collective care and safety in the area. For instance, more people will learn about the healing justice framework and arts-based healing that DVRP is offering the community, and they might find inspiration or adapt these approaches in their own ways. The themes that are already emerging in these oral histories include the power of arts and cultural programming to co-create healing and safety. We are honored to have thus far connected with one of the founding board members, our board president from 1999-2005 and 2012-2015, former executive directors, artist collaborators, as well as our current staff members! We are deeply grateful for their time, stories, and reflections and will continue to gather interviews through the end of the year. 

This project is part of the DC Oral History Collaborative, a partnership between HumanitiesDC and the DC Public Library. The project was supported by a grant from HumanitiesDC as part of the Humanities Grant Program, an initiative funded by the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities. I am very thankful to take part in this initiative that strengthens and celebrates connections within our local community. The most interesting part of this experience for me has been balancing my partnerships with HumanitiesDC, with DVRP, and with my graduate school. All the folks involved are precious collaborators to me, and I am grateful for the opportunity to navigate through bringing a community-rooted research project into being. I enjoy sharing about each aspect of this project with different people on this team, such as introducing DC Libraries and the People’s Archive to my thesis committee. I am truly honored that people from multiple aspects of my life are included and dedicated to this oral history project, and I just look forward to co-creating and developing relationships and contributing to building collective knowledge and power throughout my A/PI community in DC.

If you would like to contact us about this project, please reach out to me at lindakuo42@gmail.com.