Oral history interviews with Patricia and Herman van Betten conducted by Claytee D. White on February 6 and 20, 2007 and by Barbara Tabach on February 4, 2013 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In these interviews, Patricia van Betten discusses her participation in The League of Women Voters, the Consumer League, the Welfare Rights Movement, and the Community of a Hundred. Herman van Betten discusses his work with the Clark County School Board, the foundation of the English department at Nevada Southern University (University of Nevada, Las Vegas) and his role as director of the Clark County Community College (CCCC). The couple also talk about their upbringings, education, marriage, and family, local history in Las Vegas, their life-long involvement in Democratic politics, and their joint appointment by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) as Civil Libertarians of the Year.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Charles Lee Hank III conducted by Claytee D. White and Barbara Tabach on April 10, 2019 for the Remembering 1 October Oral History Project.
Charles Lee Hank III describes his experience with police growing up in Chicago and the dichotomy he feels now as a police officer for the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LV Metro). Hank discusses the events of the October 1 shooting at the Route 91 Festival, the chaotic experience he and other officers experienced as they looked for the shooter in the Mandalay Bay, and the aftermath as a member of the Las Vegas community and as an officer of LV Metro.
Subjects discussed include: Las Vegas Strip Area Command.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Emmanuel Ortega conducted by Monserrath Hernandez, Maribel Estrada Calderon, Elsa Lopez, Barbara Tabach, and Laurents Bañuelos Benitez on 2019 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project. Emmanuel Ortega was born in Artesia, California and was raised in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico before moving to El Paso, Texas with his family at the age of thirteen. In 1998 his family relocated once again from El Paso to Las Vegas, Nevada where his father joined the Carpenters Union. They settled in Green Valley and he began attending a hybrid community college and high school program allowing him to obtain college credits. He continued at the College of Southern Nevada for two more years where he was a photography major and later transferred to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) where he studied art history. He moved back to Las Vegas in 2011 where he began teaching at UNLV and received a PhD in Ibero-American colonial art history from the University of New Mexico in 2017. He is the co-host of the podcast "Latinos Who Lunch" where hosts discuss pop culture, art, and issues of race, sex, and gender in the Latinx community.
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Oral history joint interview with the "Holiday in Japan" dancers conducted by Claytee D. White on May 26, 2011 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. The dancers present for the interview were Sachiko O. Thompson, Minoru Saito, Kazu Hamada, Kyoko Nakamura, Nobuko Suda, and Katsuko Tomoko Billman. The dancers begin by discussing their lives in Japan before coming to the United States in 1960 to perform their "Holiday in Japan" stage show. They describe their reactions to coming to the United States and compare it to life in Japan, as well as their reactions to coming to Las Vegas, Nevada specifically. They discuss performing their show at the New Frontier Hotel and Casino, Desert Inn Hotel and Casino, and Dunes Hotel and Casino. They describe their show, which presented Japanese culture to Western audiences, and the work that went into it. They end the interview by detailing their lives and careers after performances of the show concluded in 1961.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with José Eliqué conducted by Barbara Tabach on January 17, 2018 for the Remembering 1 October Oral History Project. In this interview, José Eliqué discusses his responsibilities as the Associate Vice President and Chief of Police for the Department of Police Services at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). He talks about the Police Services Department and its mission to maintain a safe environment on campus. Eliqué discusses the night of the October 1, 2017 shooting and the procedures in place that helped the police officers and detectives support the survivors who made their way to the UNLV campus. He also provides details about using the Thomas & Mack Center as a place of refuge for survivors. In addition to his work in Las Vegas, which started when he moved to the city in 2000, Eliqué discusses his service in the US Navy and his career history in New York City and Chicago, Illinois.
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The Nevada Test Site Oral History Project Records (approximately 1950-2008) consist of oral histories collected by University of Nevada, Las Vegas Department of History for the Nevada Test Site Oral History Project. The collection includes digital audio recordings of interviews, print and digital transcripts, and a small selection of digital video recordings. Some interviews have also been supplemented with photographs, letters, scientific articles, brochures, news clippings and ephemera about the Nevada Test Site.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Rose Miztri and Rachel Parker conducted by Claytee D. White on March 07, 2016 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Miztri discusses growing up in La Puente, California and moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1978. She describes her experiences in the United States Army and talks about being involved in a motorcycle accident. Parker talks about her upbringing and describes her experience being transgender while attending high school in Chicago, Illinois. Parker then recalls her first impressions of Las Vegas, Nevada in 1990 and why she was unable to get a job because of her sexuality. Later, Miztri and Parker discuss assisting transgender youth with housing, employment, and becoming comfortable in a society where tolerance and understanding of different sexual identities are constantly evolving. Lastly, both explain their involvement with Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), an international educational organization aimed to bring awareness on sexual identities.
Archival Collection
Oral history interviews with Olivia Díaz conducted by Nathalie Martinez and Barbara Tabach on August 31 and September 14, 2020 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project. In the first interview, Díaz gives her family and personal history, growing up in Las Vegas but often visiting her family in Durango, Mexico for extended stays. She recalls her matriarchal upbringing, particularly while living in Mexico, and what life was like growing up and going to school in East Las Vegas and at the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV). Subjects discussed include: Mexico; Latina identity. In the second interview, Díaz talks about her English language education career for the Clark County School District (CCSD) and the events that led her to run for Nevada Assembly and Las Vegas City Council. She is presently Nevada's Assemblywoman for District 11 and Las Vegas' Councilwoman for Ward 3. Olivia concludes her interview with insights into her political and educational goals for the community and the initiatives she has focused on in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Oral history interview with Meli Calvo Pulido conducted by Laurents Banuelos on November 13, 2018 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project. In this interview, Pulido discusses her early life in Tijuana, Mexico and moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in the mid-1970s. She talks about the challenges she faced as an English as a Second Language (ESL) student, and assisting her parents who did not speak English fluently. Lastly, Pulido describes volunteering for the non-profit organization Project 150, the work the organization does for homeless youth in Las Vegas, and assisting underprivileged students.
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The UNLV Remembers: an Oral History of the 6 December 2023 Shooting interviews (2024-2025) contain all oral history interviews conducted by UNLV University Libraries Oral History Research Center. This project aims to enhance the historical record about the events of December 6, 2023 shooting with first-hand accounts of the tragedy, campus and community response, and recovery efforts. Interviews are with students, staff, faculty, and others. Digital audio available for all interviews; check collection inventory for individual narrators and more detailed information on specific interviews.
Archival Collection