In association with the opening of “The Calling: The Transformative Power of African American Doll and Puppet Making” at the Sandy Spring Museum, Camila Bryce-Laporte and Pam Rogers have been gathering oral histories with women whose traditional arts defined an era in Washington D.C.’s history when art, culture, and progressive politics were intrinsically bound. They were part of the Black Arts Movement that influenced the City’s cultural aesthetics and articulated a renewed interest in African heritage, family legacies, and concern for social justice. Bryce-Laporte and Rogers will discuss their project, demonstrate some interview strategies, and explore ways to make meaning from the narratives collected.

Camila Bryce-Laporte is an independent folklorist and community scholar who works with people to help them rediscover the value of their history, their cultural traditions, their community, and themselves through the art of cultural documentation. Bryce-Laporte has worked on folklife-related projects for the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage (where she is currently a research associate), the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress, and several local and regional organizations including the Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance, Ujamaa Cooperative Farming Alliance, Sandy Spring Museum Digital Lab, and the Smithsonian’s’ African American Craft Initiative. She is curating “The Calling: The Transformative Power of African American Doll and Puppet Making” for the Sandy Spring Museum. She was educated in fine arts, performing arts, and the humanities with a specialization in folklore studies at Sarah Lawrence College and George Washington University. She works primarily in developing programs for underrepresented communities.

Pam Rogers grew up in the District of Columbia during the early 1950s and currently resides in Capitol Heights, Maryland. Her passions include music and singing. She inherited her love of singing from her parents at an early age; the family always sang together. She learned to love the harmonies of Latin Masses and Gregorian chants beginning in St. Joseph’s Catholic elementary school choir. Her singing continued in high school and in various church choirs until 1984, when she joined In Process… a women’s a cappella ensemble. She is currently director of the group whose repertoire includes songs of world-wide struggle, social justice and their own original compositions. Using rhythms and harmonies born of slavery and adapted and nurtured throughout the sojourn of African people in America, In Process… has voiced song commentaries on issues affecting all people and especially our local DMV communities: love, self-respect, women, family, the environment, health, substance abuse, AIDS, statehood, freedom and justice, equality and peace. The group has recorded 2 CDs, In Process…(produced by Bernice Johnson Reagon, founder of Sweet Honey in the Rock) and Mission Love which Rogers co-produced. It contains some of her original songs.