Tacoma Community College Archives: LGBTQIA+ Experience Project

Beginning with Pride Month 2023 as an impetus but certainly not ending with it, the TCC Archives seeks to fill gaps in the archives relating to the experiences of students, staff, and faculty of diverse sexualities and gender identities.

The TCC Archives contains very little materials relating to LGBTQIA+ students and employees despite these community members having always existed. It is important that the TCC community sees itself in the archives and this project seeks to remedy this under-representation. At a time when our trans community members are particularly threatened, this project also seeks to affirm and assert their belonging in the TCC community.

Contribute to the Project
(must be logged into your TCC email)

You can submit any text, audio, video, or creative work relating to your lived experiences at TCC as an LGBTQIA+ person, and/or respond to questions from the below prompts. These can also be used as a starting point for visual, audiovisual, artistic and creative submissions.

• Tell a story of queer joy that you have experienced during your time at TCC.
• Write about a physical place/space in Tacoma or at TCC where you feel free to be yourself.
• How do you feel TCC supports you or does not support you? Where do you seek support outside of TCC, and for what? What is the most important change you would like to see on campus to support you?
• What is a course, club, or other experience at TCC that has influenced your knowledge and views of gender and sexuality?
• How have your intersectional identities influenced your experience of being LGBTQIA+ at TCC?
• Tell a story about past or current advocacy, events, or milestones at TCC relating to LGBTQIA+ issues.
• CW: Current events. How do current national and world events affect your ability to be present in your work and studies at TCC?

If you are under 18 and would like to participate in this project, please do not submit through this form. Instead, please contact the Archivist at archives@tacomacc.edu.

You will be given different options to limit or allow digitization and digital access to your materials; your author/artist credit; the ability to change your mind and request a takedown or removal of your materials; and to transfer rights to TCC or retain them. If you have any issues or questions surrounding these fields in the project webform, please reach out to the Archivist to discuss at archives@tacomacc.edu.

Can I make multiple submissions?

Yes! The webform allows for upload of multiple files, in addition to a text box for written responses to prompts. It also allows repeat responses from the same user account if you decide you have more you want to say later.

Can I submit physical materials instead of digital materials?

Yes! Contact the Archivist at archives@tacomacc.edu to arrange transfer of the physical items.

I have materials but I don't want to give them up. How do I participate?

If you're willing to loan the materials and they are capable of being scanned, the Archivist can temporarily borrow your items, digitize them, then return your originals.

I don't identify as LGBTQIA+. Can I still participate?

While we appreciate your interest, this project is primarily intended to document the voices of LGBTQIA+ community members, who are under-represented in our archives. We ask that you make room for these folks to be heard.

If you do not identify as LGBTQIA+ but do significant and unique work with queer students and/or employees, your participation is welcome. However, please be sure to pay close attention to privacy and do not provide personally identifying information of anyone.

I want to participate but I don't want to be identified.

You can respond to the form and request anonymization or a pseudonym/alternate credit, and only the Archivist will know your contact information. This is ideal if you decide in the future you want to remove your submission altogether so that the Archivist can confirm your submission.

If you are uncomfortable with the Archivist knowing your identity as well, stay tuned for some fully anonymous options to participate. Please note that later removal requests will likely not be possible due to the inability to connect submissions with their authors.