Oral History Commons^™

Legal Provisions And Administration Of Land Disputes In Kiteto District, Ca. 1970s – 2000s: The Missing Linkage, Juma Marmo

Zamani: A Journal of African Historical Studies

There have been a series of legal interventions on land use in the post-colonial Tanzania to create a good land administration and management in order to end land use conflicts. Scholarship on the legal aspect of land use indicates that legal interventions did not provide lasting solutions to land use conflicts because of their structural and systemic arrangements. In addition, existing scholarship has little focus on the linkage between law enforcement machinery, the peoples’ level of understanding on land laws, and the occurrence of land use conflicts. This paper discusses the violation of laws by peasants, pastoralists, and government officials …

Introduction: Failed Futures? (Post)-Colonial Planning And Future-Making In Tanzania, Ulrike Lindner

Zamani: A Journal of African Historical Studies

Future-making and planning as social practices are strongly related to the
surrounding society’s political structures and power relations. In this
special issue of ZAMANI, we conceptualize future-making as physical
changes and social practices that shape future conditions by making future
an issue in the present. We analyse how different approaches to the future,
and also surprises and unintended side-effects, have informed the politics
and practices of planning in Tanzania and its various regions.1 When we ask:
“Failed Futures?” we address future in the plural, a term that has diffused
into historical scholarship rather recently and originates from
futurology/future studies, known …

‘Sold Down The River’: Histories Of Production, Trade, And Transport Along The Waterways Of The Kilombero Valley, Tanzania, Jonathan M. Jackson

Zamani: A Journal of African Historical Studies

This article considers the centrality of waterways in the Kilombero Valley of Tanzania to the region’s histories of development from above, particularly in terms of infrastructure, crop production, trade, and transport. Early colonial investigations hoped Kilombero’s riverine system might prove a navigable link from the coast to the Southern Highlands. The British colonial era instead focused more on utilising riverine networks for internal goods transport. Throughout these colonial visions – simultaneously ambitious and naïve – the prevalent dug- out canoe was considered unsafe, inefficient, and replaceable by modernised methods. But the canoe – a symbol of indigenous knowledge and practice …

Nurturing Traditional Midwifery And Medicine: The Entangled Path Of Health Integration In Post-Independence Kilombero, Tanzania, Veronica Kimani

Zamani: A Journal of African Historical Studies

This paper focuses on the Tanzanian government’s ambitious endeavour to enhance health, particularly midwifery services following independence. The initial strategy by the government involved promoting Western medicine by establishing healthcare facilities and training medical personnel. However, the strain of a burgeoning population and limited resources soon became evident, prompting the government to recognise the need for the incorporation of traditional medicine, previously overlooked. This integration posed its own set of obstacles, as the focus on herbal remedies overshadowed crucial aspects of conventional midwifery, such as rituals. While research has shown the resolve of the government towards medical integration between different …

Health Infrastructure Planning In Tanzania, 1961–1980s: The Problems Of Future-Making, Frank Edward, Ulrike Lindner

Zamani: A Journal of African Historical Studies

Between 1961 and 1978, Tanzania invested significantly in the health service provision – from training requisite manpower, provision of health education to building the necessary infrastructure in order to improve health conditions of the population. As existing research indicates, the investment paid off considerably in qualitative terms, for instance, with a gradual increase in life expectancy and a decline in infant mortality. This paper examines the vision of the state of health in Tanzania by using the prism of infrastructure. Its focus is on direct and indirect physical infrastructures, particularly medical buildings and facilities. Through the analysis of archival and …

Front Matter - Zamani 1, No. 1, Editors Note

Zamani: A Journal of African Historical Studies

This is the maiden issue of Zamani: A Journal of African Historical Studies. It charts the beginning of a continental journal that is based in an African higher education institution within Africa. It breaks away from the traditional historical journals in Africa of being national or regional and at best being owned and operated by scholars and institutions from Europe and North America. With this maiden issue, the journal seeks to demonstrate that it is part of the bigger knowledge decolonization movement. It seeks to influence historical writing and research by giving more Africanness in ownership, operations, production and knowledge …

Medical Mission Futures: German Protestant Missionaries And Modern Healthcare In Southern Highlands, Tanzania,1891–1940, Luoneko Kaduma

Zamani: A Journal of African Historical Studies

The history of colonial missionaries in Tanzania is marked by a complex interplay between evangelical efforts and the provision of Western biomedicine, which functioned as crucial mechanisms for conversion and cultural transformation. Missionaries viewed the improvement of African health as a project aimed at attracting converts and propagating Christianity. However, the available data indicates that, instead of genuinely expressing interest in converting to Christianity, the majority of Africans primarily sought mission medical assistance for medical reasons while maintaining strong connections to their traditional beliefs and healing practices. This paper, drawing from archival documents, ethnographic accounts, and missionary writings, focuses on …

‘Prevention Is Better Than Cure’: Smallpox Vaccination In Postcolonial Tanzania, 1961–1980, Musa Sadock

Zamani: A Journal of African Historical Studies

This article examines the smallpox vaccination programme in postcolonial Tanzania from the 1960s to the early 1980s as part of the postcolonial future making in preventive medicine. The article departs from extant scholarship on smallpox vaccination in postcolonial Tanzania, which depicts the intervention as a success, while relegating to the background challenges associated with the intervention. The article argues that the smallpox vaccination programme registered challenges and successes that offer lessons for combating of future epidemics. The achievements of the programme were due to the adoption of specific public health policies, namely mass vaccination and public health education as well …

Interview No. 1791, Ingrid Leyva Vasquez

Combined Interviews

Ingrid Leyva Vásquez was born in Chihuahua, Chihuahua, but grew up in Ciudad Juárez. She considers herself a borderland resident since she often travels back and forth between the United States and Mexico. She remembers traveling to El Paso on weekends to spend time with family or enjoy family celebrations. Her family had birthday celebrations at Furr's and went shopping at the dollar store; she felt that her childhood was typical for Juárez.

However, she also addresses the violence created by the Calderon Administration and the “narco” war. Ingrid is the middle child of three women and was raised solely …

Fictional And Historical Narratives Of African American Soldiers Of Wwii, Abigail Rae Stewart

Honors Theses

This thesis examines the experiences of African American soldiers during World War II through the dual lenses of oral histories and fictionalized accounts, arguing that both are essential to fully understanding their multifaceted journeys at home and abroad. Oral histories provide direct, personal narratives from veterans themselves, capturing their voices, emotions, and reflections on the discrimination, camaraderie, and resilience that defined their wartime and postwar lives. These firsthand accounts offer invaluable insights into the structural realities of systemic racism within the military and society, as well as the personal sacrifices these soldiers made in the name of a country that …

Bechen-Rivera, Liam, Devon Rosano

Querying the Past: LGBTQ Maine Oral History Project Collection

Liam Bechen-Munoz is a 38-year-old trans man living in Portland, Maine. He grew up in a conservative Catholic town in Massachusetts before attending the University of Maine in Farmington, where he performed and did activism as a member of the Queer Student Alliance. After coming out, Bechen-Munoz faced discrimination and experienced getting fetishized online. He is a queer musician who has dealt with substance abuse but became sober in November of 2023. In this interview, Bechen-Munoz discusses some of the challenges he has faced, especially around coming out.

William Holmes Interviewing Rosetta Holmes Unm Oral History 300, William Holmes

Oral Histories HIST 300, Fall 2024

William Holmes interviews his grandmother Rosetta Holmes, a member of the Choctaw Nation, on her upbringing, life, and various stories from her childhood. She goes through how her family ended up in Hugo, Oklahoma. Her small town upbringing, how she met her husband, starting her family, and her education and the various jobs she has worked in her life. This was a project for oral history 300 at the University of New Mexico in which William used this opportunity to hear about his family and learn about his ancestors.

Food History With Laila Halloul, Amelie Helene Noelle Palmer

Oral Histories HIST 300, Fall 2024

Oral History Interview conducted by Amelie Palmer with interviewee Laila Halloul. Completed for Dr. Holly Guise's HIST300 Oral History course in Fall of 2024. Discussion centers food memories, experiences, and traditions specific to Halloul's culture, geographies, and preferences.

Oral History Casey Goodson, Brady Goodson

Oral Histories HIST 300, Fall 2024

Interview of pastor Casey Goodson by Brady Goodson. Discusses elementary education and teaching as well as the work of a pastor.

Oral History Midterm Fall 2024 With Bethany Padilla, Brooke Umali Tran

Oral Histories HIST 300, Fall 2024

Ten minute interview with Bethany Padilla about her story.

Teresa Rodriquez Academic History, David L. C'De Baca

Oral Histories HIST 300, Fall 2024

Oral History of Teresa's current academic achievements

Presley Monteforte Interview Fall 2024, Brady Goodson

Oral Histories HIST 300, Fall 2024

Interview with Presley Monteforte by Brady Goodson. Discusses baseball and school stress.

Francesca C'De Baca Academic History, David L. C'De Baca

Oral Histories HIST 300, Fall 2024

Francesa C'de Baca current academic and extracurricular achievements as of December 2024.

David C'De Baca Interview By Teresa Rodriguez Sotelo For Unm Oral History Class, Fall 2024., Teresa Rodriguez Sotelo

Oral Histories HIST 300, Fall 2024

David C'de Baca Interview for Oral History Class at UNM during Fall 2024. David talks about his research and motivation for studying history.

Italians, Finns, Methodists, And The Klan: A Look Into The Complex Identities And Relationships That Were Prominent In The Upper Peninsula During The 1920s, Piper R. Kraft

HS 390 Primary Research Papers

This essay focuses on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan in the 1920s and the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan. Using interviews from the Italian Oral History Collection, this essay explores the relationship between Italians, Finns, and the KKK. Rather than focusing on labor relations, this essay explores how these groups saw exogamy, the value placed on maintaining one’s religious connection and perceived racial identity. This research touches on the intersectionality of racialized ethnicity, religion, and class, concluding that the predominantly Methodist KKK would be more open to relationships, both personal and professional, with Finnish immigrants, even though they do …