131. Elmire Raven, Interview by Jordan Hardee, November 19, 2015
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132. Leonard Riley, Interview by Kieran Taylor, 19 September, 2013
- Date:
- 9/19/2013
- Description:
- "Longshoreman and civil rights unionist Leonard Riley, Jr. was born on August 27th, 1952, in Charleston, South Carolina. A lifelong resident of West Ashley, Riley’s family owned several acres of land which they farmed. To supplement the income from farming, his father worked seasonal jobs to be able to provide for his five children. It was in these seasonal jobs that Leonard Riley, Sr., became the first family member to work the waterfront. Later, his sons, Leonard and Kenneth, followed in his footsteps and would later become union leaders at the ILA local 1422. Riley relays his own introduction to longshoring, describing how he began at the age of eighteen, during the summer before his first year of college. His first day at work left an indelible memory. Riley recalls, ""Yeah, that was—that first day was unbelievable. I thought I was going to die, literally, cramping—all the bottoms of your feet cramping. I'll never forget that day: hands chafed out by getting blisters on the hands. But these guys were used to it, so it didn't bother them. They dragged me through that day."" After beginning his studies at the College of Charleston the following fall, Riley worked at the docks each summer. Though he earned a bachelor’s degree in Biology, after graduation Riley realized he truly enjoyed his job at the port. In addition to providing a good income, the job helped him to emerge as a young leader among his co-workers. Reflecting on years past, Riley stresses how drastically the maritime industry has changed due to automatization and stresses the union's crucial role in protecting the workers in a changing landscape. Amongst his memories, the 2002 strike against Nordana shipping stands out. Riley tells of the national and international attention- and international assistance- the conflict generated. He describes how the clash was resolved with the help and solidarity of Spanish dockworkers who forced the company to negotiate. Riley concludes and explains that longshoring has historically been a black industry that can be traced through the years back to slavery."
133. Michael Novelli, Interview by William Curtis, 19 April, 2021
- Date:
- 2021-04-19
- Description:
- Michael Novielli was born in 1964 in New York. In 2020, he relocated to Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, attracted by the beauty of the region and the prospects to live in a conservative state. In the interview, he talks about his work and experience as a businessperson and the reasons why he felt compelled to be part of the Tea Party movement. He reflects on the challenges the Tea Party confronted to accomplish its goals. Currently, Novelli is a member of Friends of Liberty, a group that seeks to defend the USA Constitution, fight for election integrity, and support conservative people in local elections.
134. Ron Plunkett, Interview by John Mahoney, 19 April 2018
- Date:
- 4/19/2018
- Description:
- Ron Plunkett discusses his experience as an Irish-American in the South. His Irish family background is largely derived from County Meath, County Louth, and County Dublin, and the first ancestor of his to come to the States was Captain Peter Plunkett, who arrived in Virginia around 1690. Ron was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. His background is Welsh, German, and French Huguenot, as well as Irish. Ron was raised in the Episcopal Church. Of anti-Irish or anti-Catholic sentiment, he states that he feels such discrimination or prejudice wasn’t a part of his experience in Atlanta, and that religious or ethnic background didn’t seem to be as big of a deal as it might have been in other places. He also discusses his time in the service during the Korean War. He first visited Ireland in the seventies on business and returned several times through his job with Sealand/Maersk Line, speaking of his experience as a visitor in the best of terms. He is a member of the Hibernian Society of Charleston and the St. David’s Society, a Welsh organization. To him, being of Irish descent in America is about celebrating one’s heritage and knowing one’s history, to share pride in the contributions of one’s ancestors.
135. Hector, Interview by Marina Lopez 19 March, 2016
- Date:
- 3/19/2016
- Description:
- Héctor was born San Andres Ixtlahuaca, Oaxaca, Mexico. In the interview, he talks about his land, the Trique culture and language, his work, and his love for basketball. Before arriving in the United States, Héctor followed the path of many young people from his region and emigrated to Mexico City in search of work and better opportunities. Just arrived in the big city, life was difficult because he had no acquaintances and did not speak Spanish well. Later, he got married and had three children. After separating from his wife, he returned to Oaxaca. Before long, he joined a group of people from his town who were planning the trip the north and crossed the border with them, arriving in California, where he worked in agriculture. He eventually settled in Moncks Corner, South Carolina. He started working at Carolina Nurseries and later obtained employment in the construction sector. His greatest passion is basketball. Héctor is the coordinator of the Hispanic League of Basketball that convenes numerous families in the area every weekend.Héctor nació en San Andrés Ixtlahuaca Oaxaca, México. En la entrevista habla acerca de su tierra, la cultura y la lengua trique, su trabajo y su amor por el basquetbol. Antes de llegar a Estados Unidos, Ramírez siguió el camino de muchos jóvenes de su región y emigró a la Ciudad de México en busca de trabajo y un mejor porvenir económico. Recién llegado a la gran ciudad sufrió penurias porque no tenía conocidos y no hablaba bien en español. Más tarde se casó y tuvo tres hijos. Después de separarse de su esposa regresó a Oaxaca. Al poco tiempo se unió a un grupo de gente de su pueblo que emprendía el viaje al norte y cruzó la frontera con ellos, llegando a California, donde trabajó en la agricultura. Finalmente, se estableció en Moncks Corner, Carolina del Sur. Comenzó a trabajar en Carolina Nurseries y posteriormente consiguió empleo en el rubro de la construcción. Su mayor pasión es el basquetbol. Héctor es el coordinador de la liga Hispana de Basquetbol que convoca cada fin de semana a numerosas familias del área.
136. Interview with Chase Glenn, September 19, 2019
- Date:
- 2019-09-19
- Description:
- Chase Glenn (pronouns: He/Him/His), white executive director of the Alliance for Full Acceptance (AFFA), speaks about himself and his family, his life impacted by a growing awareness of the LGBTQ community and its issues, his transition, and his professional development that took him from church work to his current position. Growing up in Mt. Vernon, IL, an insular, small and rural community into a loving and giving Southern Baptist family, Glenn was "pretty naive to the world growing up." While he "felt like the other," he "didn't have the words or the real understanding" of his identity. In a world where "heterosexual sex was bad, then gay sex was not just not on the table at all," he did not have a frame of reference or knowledge about gay or trans people. Not until attending Belmont University in Nashville, TN did Glenn know gay people and there it was a shock to be told that women could never be ministers in the Southern Baptist denomination, despite Glenn's life-long "call" to the ministry. Never "feeling fully a girl," Glenn began a relationship with another woman, that being the "path of least resistance" and worked in churches. When outed as a lesbian at work in a church in Florida, Glenn was given the option to stop living that way or be fired. That prompted a 2006 move to Charleston, SC, where Glenn maintained a relationship with a lesbian, was married, came out successfully to his family, and worked for the Mt. Pleasant Presbyterian Church. After seven years he began to work for Blackbaud, and his awareness grew as to his true identity. His relationship ended; he discusses some of the lesbian and other bars in Charleston he attended, as he openly pursued his transition, sharing it online and on his dating profiles. He met a woman whom he married and now the couple has a son through invitro fertilization. Glenn discusses his fears of being an appropriate father and recalls his growing involvement in the LGBTQ community, doing the design and layout for the first Pride programs, serving on its board, that of AFFA, and working for SC Equality and the Trans Action Committee. Having gotten a master's degree in counseling and experiencing again the call to advocate for, and work with, people, Glenn, after discussions with his wife, left the safety of his corporate job to become the director of the non-profit AFFA. He describes the directions in which he took the organization, details the complexities of the community needs assessment survey AFFA and its partners undertook, discusses some of the results, talks about how race and racism affect the community and how society affords him "white male straight privilege" because of his appearance.
137. Interview with Melissa Moore, February 19, 2019
- Date:
- 2019-02-19
- Description:
- Melissa Moore (pronouns: They/Them) discusses their personal life and the various roles they played in numerous social causes and organizations, many being LGBTQ related. Born in Mt. Pleasant, SC, they identified as male, and, denied that self-expression, Moore details the impact it had on their school years and the numbing escape made possible by drugs and alcohol. In passing Moore also describes a run-in with religious demands at Vacation Bible School, and being exposed to, and fascinated by, female impersonators at an early age. At the College of Charleston, Moore joined such groups as the Gay and Lesbian Alliance, and the Women’s Forum, engaging intellectually and socially with new people and ideas. Coming to see that societal norms aid in controlling conformity and denying diversity, Moore was strongly affected by a billboard supporting LGBTQ rights put up by the Alliance for Full Acceptance (AFFA). That prompted them to begin volunteering, and eventually working, for AFFA under the direction of Warren Redman-Gress. Moore later went on to work with Linda Ketner and SC Equality to attempt to defeat the movement within the state of South Carolina to define marriage as between a man and a woman. That was unsuccessful. In the process, Moore came into contact with other organizations such as Southerners on New Ground and worked with activists including Mandy Carter and others, creating opportunities to learn grass root organizing skills and to work with groups like Africa House in Orangeburg, SC. Moore notes the reluctance or refusal of national and other LGBTQ organizations to fund work in the South, assuming it “unwinnable” and also speaks to the lack of funding for social service agencies in lieu of political ones. Working with the Abortion Access Project, later called Provide, gave Moore further experience and they eventually became director of We Are Family, an organization in Charleston for LGBTQ youth. Moore details how under their management and planning the organization and its programs grew. They describe the plan to fund the organization through the creation of a thrift store and Moore notes how three LGBTQ organizations in town, Charleston Pride, AFFA and We Are Family recently moved to the same building in North Charleston. After touching on subjects like transphobia, the new management of We Are Family, and naming many people in the field they admire, Moore finishes the interview describing their new position with the city of Mount Pleasant, working on sustainable and equitable city planning.
138. Jewish Heritage Collection Speech: The Jewish Community of Beaufort in 1905 and the Founding of Beth Israel Congregation
- Date:
- 4/2/2005
- Description:
- Helen Goldman and Stephen Schein delivered this talk titled “The Jewish Community of Beaufort in 1905 and the Founding of Beth Israel Congregation” at the April 2005 meeting of the Jewish Historical Society of South Carolina (JHSSC), held in Beaufort, South Carolina, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Beth Israel Congregation. Bernard Warshaw, president of the JHSSC, welcomes audience members and reads the governor’s proclamation honoring the anniversary, and Julian Levin introduces the speakers. Goldman and Schein discuss the history of the congregation and, more specifically, their grandfathers and founding members, David Schein and Morris Levin and their families.
139. Oral History Interview with Eugene C. Hunt, 1980
- Date:
- 11/4/1980
- Description:
- Interview with Eugene C. Hunt by Edmund L. Drago, August 28, 1980 and November 4, 1980, AMN 500.001.005.1980, in the Avery Normal Institute Oral History Project, of the Avery Research Center at the College of Charleston
140. Oral History Interview with J. Michael Graves, 1985
- Date:
- 3/7/1985
- Description:
- Interview with J. Michael Graves by Edmund L. Drago, March 7, 1985, AMN 500.001.006 1985, in the Avery Normal Institute Oral History Project, of the Avery Research Center at the College of Charleston