IASA-BAAC 2026 Conference

Name: Preserving Memory Under Threat: LGBTQ+ Oral Histories in Post-HB 261 Utah
Start: 2026-10-22T13:30:00+0300
End: 2026-10-22T14:00:00+0300

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Preserving Memory Under Threat: LGBTQ+ Oral Histories in Post-HB 261 Utah

Thursday October 22, 2026 1:30pm - 2:00pm EEST

Events hall: Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania: Great Hall

With the passage of Utah’s house bill 261 (HB 261), titled “Equal Opportunity Initiatives”, cultural centers were dismantled across all Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) offices on all public universities across the state. For the University of Utah, this meant the closure of LGBTQ+ Resource Center, among many others, in 2024.

Since this closure, Special Collections at the University of Utah has been put in a balancing act of navigating a world of persistent trepidation and accessibility to collections promoting LGBTQ histories. In highlighting two oral history collections, The HIV Oral History Project and Affirmation: Gay and Lesbian Mormons Oral History Collection, I examine how differing conditions of creations of creation shape present-day risk. Factors of where interviews were conducted, facilitation, and original intent inform levels around vulnerability and disclosure, particularly with information of health status, religious affiliation, and visibility intersect. These decisions require differentiated access strategies, where decisions around description and availability are decided by the specific ethical and contextual risks embedded in each collection.

This presentation situates these collections within a broader framework of targeted community memory of the LGBTQ community under threat in wake of HB 261. I examine how archival practice becomes a site of intervention, and functions as a mode of resistance and survival. Using these oral history collections, I outline strategies for navigating these parameters in an environment where support is unstable. Central to this discussion are the ethics of visibility and consent under repressive regimes, especially for interviewees whose identities, health histories, or affiliations may place them at risk.

Speakers

Duston Mazzella

Multimedia Archivist, University of Utah

Multimedia archivist at the University of Utah specializing in audiovisual preservation, digital asset management, and inclusive archival practices. My work spans audio quality control, copyright navigation, and expanding access to Indigenous and LGBTQ collections, including projects... Read More →

Thursday October 22, 2026 1:30pm - 2:00pm EEST
Events hall: Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania: Great Hall

Short Presentation, In Person

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IASA-BAAC 2026 Conference

Duston Mazzella

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IASA-BAAC 2026 Conference

Duston Mazzella

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