The South Carolina African American Heritage Commission (SCAAHC) (part of the South Carolina Department of Archives and History) has initiated Black Carolinians Speak: Portraits of a Pandemic to gather first person testimonies, letters, music, images, art and other documents that capture the experiences of African Americans in South Carolina during the global pandemic of 2020.  They suggest the following possible submission formats:

• Write: Share written testimonies of your personal experience – Diary or journal entries, letters, essays, poetry, etc.
• Create Artwork: Submit scans or photographs of drawings or paintings or share original music that reflects your own or your community’s experience.
• Take photographs or video of your environment/community/life in quarantine
• Share screenshots of relevant social media posts
• Gather testimonies from children and teens about their experiences 

The Commission plans to collect stories throughout the duration of this crisis and, whenever possible, will connect with participants to conduct oral history interviews during the months after the situation is resolved.  All documents and information collected will be included in the Commission papers housed at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History (SCDAH).  If you have questions or would like to donate oversized documents and other materials for this purpose, please contact SCAAHC Chairperson Jannie Harriot (scaahcchairlady@gmail.com) or SCDAH African American Heritage Coordinator Dr. Ramon Jackson (rjackson@scdah.sc.gov).