What we learned

Past

Augustana College's representation of theatre in the 80's was quite minuscule– literally. The majority of the articles containing the fine arts were either reviews of the show, interviews with the cast or production team, and flashy photos meant to grab audience members. The only newsworthy mentions of theatre were headlined because of the show's performance, but the description was rather brief. There were whole pages of current events, sports, and stories of happenings at Augustana, but the discourse surrounding theatre was slim. The theater department was still getting its barring, only becoming an official major some time in 1983/84, using Bergandof instead having a whole building for theater. The Observer did its best to promote the shows Augustana was putting on. The college did its best to support students pursuing the arts.

In regard to LGBTQ+ presence at Augustana, there wasn't a gay male support group till 1983. During the years of archival, there was never mention of a lesbian support group, and there was no information on transgender individuals. When homosexuality was written about, it was either the butt end of a joke, an insult, or hypersexual. Even though the aids epidemic was infecting millions, there was no mention of it. While Augustana was a progressive school for its time, it was still conservative in its views. It is clear from reading through hundreds of Observer articles that student journalists are committed to writing thoughtful pieces. It is disappointing there weren't more articles devoted to publishing/historicizing the LGTBQ+ community on campus.

Present

Our thoughts so far:

Future

This project is a big one that could span an entire semester and more, but with a 20-hour time fulfillment, we did what we could do. We would love to see this process continue with other interviewers and interviewees and expand upon the arts at Augustana College/the Quad Cities. Jacqueline plans to continue the transcription work and finalize this project in the near future, and we encourage other students to continue on as well. Once this chapter is closed, it would benefit not only the students involved but the community members who wish to tell their stories and shine a light on the queer experience as well. We hope future students continue to make connections like we have.