Week 1: Getting to Know You

This week I started my first official day with the archives. There was a lot of information given, and I'm definitely feeling the new job nerves. My supervisor did also mention that this is her first time having an intern, so that does make me feel better as this is my first archival internship as we're both figuring this out together. I still somehow managed to get lost on my first day, but I'm giving myself grace because the library is a very weird shape.

My first official day was spent reading. A lot. There were manuals, guides, other finding aids, and processing notes. It was quite a bit to take in, and having no actual archival experience apart from LIS 505 last year, it did feel nice to have a review of what is expected from me. My second day I actually got to touch the items, and start re-labeling folders. The collection I'm working with has passed through several hands, so I'm hoping I can complete this correctly. This quarter I get to work on processing and creating a finding aid for a collection, and I'm very excited to be able to do the work. It's a lot to go through, but luckily the school is kind enough to let me continue even past this quarter if necessary.

The collection I'm working with is from the papers of Paul Bannai, the first Japanese-American to serve in California legislature. He was interned in Manzanar during WWII, and later served in the 442nd infantry. When he came home from the war, Bannai and his family settled in California.

This is a history that is personally interesting to me, as my parents are immigrants from the Philippines and the Japanese occupation during that time period deeply affected my grandparents. It's interesting to see the congruent histories that were suffered on both sides, and it gives me a greater perspective of the suffering the marginalized communities feel during war time.

I'm excited to go back in tomorrow to familiarize myself more with the collection!