SECOND LARGEST RACIAL GROUP IN CHICAGO WITH NEARLY 30% OF THE CITY'S POPULATION IDENTIFYING AS HISPANIC OR LATINO.

ACCORDING TO THE 2020 CENSUS.

BUT ADVOCATES SAY THE IMPACT THEY'VE HAD IN CHICAGO IS IN WELL REPRESENTED IN HISTORICAL RECORDS.

ONE GROUP IS WORKING TO FIX THAT BY CREATING THEIR OWN SPACE FOR LATINOS TO SHARE THEIR HISTORIES.

JOINING US WITH MORE ON THE PROJECT ARE NANCY VF ENGEL, PRESIDENT AND CO-FOUNDER OF CASES CHICAGO STORY COALITION I SEE VICE PRESIDENT AND CO-FOUNDER OF ISIS CHICAGO STORY COALITION.

THANK YOU BOTH JOINING US.

THIS SOUNDS LIKE A REALLY INTERESTING INITIATIVE.

NANCY, WANT TO START WITH YOU.

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO START BUT THANK YOU.

WELL, HONESTLY, THAT THERE WAS NO ONE SINGLE THING THAT INSPIRED ME.

I WOULD SAY THERE WAS A A SERIES OF EXPERIENCES OVER THE COURSE OF SEVERAL YEARS THAT I'M REALLY AND CONNECTIONS GOT US TO THIS MOMENT.

ANYTHING FROM THE 26 16 ELECTION AND THE NEGATIVE STEREOTYPES THAT WE'RE JUST GETTING FIGHT SO MUCH AND, YOU KNOW, THE POLITICAL SPHERE.

FROM YEARS GETTING WHITEWASHED FROM TRYING TO DO MY OWN HISTORY.

IT AND RESEARCH AND NOT FINDING WHERE TO GO.

EVEN THOUGH I'VE WORKED IN MUSEUMS, I WORKED IN PLACES THAT HAVE THESE ARCHIVES, NOT EVEN FINDING WHERE TO GO FOR THE BIG STORIES, MUCH LESS.

SOME OF US LESSER KNOWN STORIES SO THAT AND WHILE WORKING AT HISTORY MUSEUM COLLABORATING WITH FOLKS LIKE INDIANA IS THAT BOTH SPENT YESTERDAY TRYING TO ACTUALLY CREATE RESOURCES FOR THAT, FRED, SO THAT YOUNG PEOPLE WOULD LEARN ABOUT THEIR HISTORY AND FINDING THAT WE HAD GO SHOOT PHOTOS OURSELVES A LITTLE BIT OF FRUSTRATION THAT I'M TRYING TO TRYING TO FIND LIKE JUST MOMENTS OF HISTORY IN OUR IN OUR CULTURE.

ABSOLUTELY.

IT WAS INCREDIBLY FRUSTRATING.

IT WAS ALSO REALLY DISHEARTENING BECAUSE I WAS LIKE I MATTER.

MY COMMUNITY MATTERS.

WHY NOBODY CARE ABOUT PRESERVING OUR STAR, AS YOU HAS A LONG HISTORY, VERY SO HISTORY.

SO TELL ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT 90.

HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT CHOOSING THE DOCUMENTS?

VIDEO, AUDIO TAKE ME THROUGH THAT PROCESS WILL THANK YOU FOR ASKING BECAUSE OUR APPROACH IS I THINK A BIT UNIQUE, RIGHT FOR ONE.

WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE MAKE ACCESSIBLE ARE THE ARCHIVES THAT WE THEY'RE ALREADY OUT THERE IN THE EXIST.

SO WE WANT TO BUILD A DIRECTORY SO THAT THOSE BECOME ACCESSIBLE.

SO THAT FOLKS KNOW GO TO OUR WEBSITE.

YOU FIND OUT ABOUT EVERYTHING THAT IS ALREADY AVAILABLE AND OUT THERE.

WHETHER YOU'RE A STUDENT, A RESEARCHER OR AN ARTIST OR SOMEONE WHO WANTS TO LEARN ABOUT THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD.

BUT WE ALSO WANT TO WORK WITH THAT.

THE ORGANIZATIONS FOR THEM TO BE ABLE TO HAVE THE CAPACITY AND THE RESOURCES TO DO THEIR OWN ARCHIVING.

SO THAT'S THAT'S WHERE THE COALITION COMES IN AND PROFESSIONAL THE MOUNTAIN RESOURCES, PARTNERSHIPS AND COLLABORATION.

AND THEN OF COURSE, STORY TELLING PROJECTS TO ADDRESS A LOT OF THE INTERESTS NEEDS BUT ALSO GAPS IN THE STORIES THAT ARE REALLY NOT KNOWN OR UNDERSTOOD OR OR SOMETIMES GENERALIZED, YOU KNOW, OUR STORY SO COMPLEX AND SO DIVERSE RUNS OVER SO MUCH TIME, RIGHT?

AND IT'S A IT'S NOT FAIR PRICE.

PAYS.

WILL PEOPLE BE ABLE TO USE AS A TOOL?

WOULD YOU SAY YEAH, WE'RE A CAPACITY BUILDING ORGANIZATION.

SO WE'RE NOT INTEREST AND CENTRALIZING.

THE ARCHIVES WITH INVASIVE CHICAGO, WE BELIEVE IN THE POWER OF COMMUNAL STORYTELLING.

AND SO WE WANT TO SUPPORT ORGANIZATIONS TO TELL THEIR STORIES SO THAT WE CAN COLLABORATIVELY TELL A LARGER MORE COMPLEX STORY ABOUT CHICAGO AND THE FEW DOZEN CHICAGO AND THEY TOGETHER.

OF COURSE, WHAT FOUND INTERESTING IN 1980, THE U.S. CENSUS BUREAU REPORTED 40% THE NOSE MADE UP TO SHUT THE CHICAGO POPULATION.

NOW THERE'S SEEN AN INCREASE OF ALMOST 30%.

DANA, WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU HEAR NUMBERS LIKE THAT?

AND THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION.

I YOU KNOW, I THINK OF US.

SKEPTICAL ABOUT THOSE NUMBERS, RIGHT?

LIKE WHAT DOES IT HOW IS THIS DATA COLLECTED?

WE KNOW THAT FOR MANY YEARS, LATINOS WERE UNDER THE WEIGHT CATEGORY AND SENSES.

SO WE REALLY ACTUALLY DON'T HAVE ACCURATE NUMBERS.

BUT FOR ME, THOSE NUMBERS REALLY ARE SUPER EXCITING BECAUSE IT TELLS IS THERE'S SO MANY STORIES OUT THERE.

THERE'S LIKE WE WILL NOT STORY THAT YOU'VE MAYBE THIS DIDN'T KNOW OR YOU'RE LIKE, OH, MAYBE THIS IS WHAT PEOPLE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT.

DON'T FORGET ABOUT I MEAN, EVEN THE ONE THAT WE'RE WORKING ON RIGHT NOW, WE REACHED OUT TO BUY ANOTHER ORGANIZATION AND THEY WANT TO DOCUMENT THE HISTORY OF BEING AT THOSE WHO ARE ACTIVELY RENO REPRODUCING THIS BEAUTIFUL CULTURAL TREND, TRADITION, FOR EXAMPLE, AND THAT WE WOULD HAVE NOT THOUGHT TO DO THAT, BUT BECAUSE FOLKS CAME TO US AND NOW THAT THEY REALIZE THAT THEIR SUPPORT AND INTEREST IT'S BEEN IT'S BEEN REALLY INTERESTING.

IT WE CANNOT WAIT TO SEE THE ORAL HISTORIES AND THAT THE WAYS THAT WE'RE GOING TO SHOW THEM SHARE THEM WITH EVERYBODY ELSE IS INTERESTING, THOUGH, SOME OF THE PROJECTS YOU'RE WORKING ON, WE ALL OF DATA FOR YOU.

A COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION REACHED OUT TO US TO COORDINATE THE COLLECTING OF HISTORIES FOR FOLKS WHO HAVE BEEN FOR YEARS WORKING HAS BEEN AT THE MAKERS.

AND SO THEY KNOW THAT WE HAVE VERY GOOD ORAL HISTORY SKILLS, US HISTORIANS.

AND SO WE'RE REALLY EXCITED BECAUSE WE JUST ACTUALLY STARTED THE COLLECTING OF ORAL HISTORIES.

AND IT'S REALLY BEAUTIFUL TO BE ABLE TO LIKE SIT IN THE SPACES WHERE FOLKS CREATE.

WE WERE IN A CANDY STORE THIS THIS, THOUGH, YESTERDAY COLLECTING THE ORAL HISTORIES.

SO IT TAKES A DIFFERENT PLACES.

YEAH, ALL OVER THE CITY BECAUSE AND EVEN BEYOND LIMITS OF THE CITY, BECAUSE OUR STORIES ARE SO VAST AND THEY COVER THE ENTIRE CHICAGO LAND AREA NOT TO CHICAGO DEALS WITH MENTIONED THAT YOU WORK WITH OTHER ORGANIZATIONS TO TEACH STUDENTS HOW TO ARCHIVES.

TELL ME WHY THAT'S SO IMPORTANT.

I MEAN, IT'S IMPORTANT BECAUSE THE KIDS THAT THEIR HISTORY IS GETTING ERASED WITH EVERY YEAR THAT THEY DON'T HAVE A PLACE TO ACCESS.

THEY KNOW THAT THEIR CULTURAL IDENTITY IS NOT REINFORCE WHEN THEY CANNOT GO TO A PLACE WHERE THEIR IDENTITY AND THEIR HISTORY CELEBRATED FOR THAT.

FOR THAT REASON ALONE IS THIS WORK JUST TERRIBLY IMPORTANT RIGHT NOW.

SO TELL ME ABOUT AS WE KNOW, THERE'S HUNDREDS OF VENEZUELANS WHO'VE MADE THEIR WAY TO CHICAGO.

IS THAT SOMETHING YOU'RE ALSO THINKING ABOUT ABOUT HOW TO DOCUMENT THEIR STORIES IN YOU KNOW, AS AN UNDOCUMENTED PERSON FOR MANY YEARS AND WHEN I WAS YOUNG, I USED TO LIVE WITH THE FEAR THAT I WOULD BE DEPORTED AND DISAPPEARED AND NOBODY WOULD KNOW THAT I EXISTED IN CHICAGO.

AND SO THAT IDEA OF GETTING LOST IN THE MOVEMENT OF PEOPLE ACROSS BORDERS SPACE AND TIME WITH SOMETHING THAT I THOUGHT ABOUT.

AND SO WE'RE MOST DEFINITELY VERY INTERESTED IN ENSURING THAT THE FOLKS WHO ARE COMING TO CHICAGO UNDERSTAND THAT JUST LIKE THOSE WHO CAME BEFORE AND THOSE WHO ARE COMING NOW LIGHT WE MATTER.

WE ARE CHICAGO AND WE WILL.

WE WILL BE HERE AND WE'RE SO EXCITED TO COLLECT THOSE STORIES.

BUT ALSO FUN.

INTERESTING IS WHEN I GO INTO YOUR IS INSTAGRAM, YOU ASKED PEOPLE TO SUBMIT THEIR STORIES.

WHAT WAS THE PURPOSE FOR PEOPLE WANT TO SHARE THEM WITH EVERYONE.

THAT YOU KNOW, WE TALK A GIRL PRIDE IN THEIR HOUSE AND WE HAD CELEBRATIONS.

WE WOULD ALWAYS GATHER AND TALK.

IT'S ALMOST LIKE I NEED.

PEOPLE WANTED TELL THEIR STORY TO HEAL.

WE NEED TO SHARE THEM WITH WITH ONE ANOTHER TO HEAL, TO GET ALONG TO BETTER UNDERSTAND ONE ANOTHER.

I WOULD SAY IT'S A HUMAN NEED AND USE RIGHT.

NOT EVEN A YEAR AGO WE JANUARY OUR WEB SITE LAUNCHED THIS BEEN, YOU KNOW, 7 MONTHS.

PLUS, AND WE ARE BEAUTIFULLY SURPRISED HOW MUCH THE POSITIVE RESPONSE HAS BEEN.

WELL, THANK YOU.

LOOKING