The DADHA Project is a digital historical (and contemporary) archive of the stretch of W. Devon east-west from N. Broadway to Kedzie Ave. It is an approximately three-mile stretch of primarily businesses. Devon Ave. has, like many parts of Chicago, experienced significant changes in the past thirty years. However, Devon Ave.’s history traces back to at least the 1930s (even further, but we begin here with arrival of businesses). From an initial presence of Eastern European immigrants and Orthodox Jewish communities, there has been a dramatic shift in the composition of the Devon Ave. neighborhoods and businesses since the 1980s. The arrival of South Asians (from India and Pakistan) and Assyrians has added a new ethno-cultural and historical dimension to Devon Ave. Changes in US immigration policies and in recent years, and more recently the impact of Iraq War II (2003-2011), has seen a change in the composition of many Devon Avenue businesses. Moreover, although businesses may be owned or managed by individual of the area’s diverse ethno-cultural communities, much of the labor is done by immigrants from Latin America. DADHA traces the histories of the experiences, past and present, of the individuals, families, and communities of Devon Avenue.
Qualities seeking: independent and self-motivated individuals; mutli- or inter-disciplinary interest in history, sociology, urban studies, American and ethnic studies , and economics.
Not required, but useful: fluent in languages other than English: Hindi/Urdu, Spanish, and Iraqi Arabic.
Duties, depending on talents and experience, may include:
- Web design: (See: www.dadha.org)
- Archival research: especially at the Chicago History Museum and the Rogers Park Historical Society.
- Interviews: interview Devon Ave. merchants, employees, building owners, and community organization members. Note: this is a restricted field of work. Interns must pass the Institutional Review Board (IRB) course or the CITI on-line test.
- Photography and video work: photograph storefronts and other buildings along Devon Ave. Much of the initial photographic work has been completed, but it is also an on-going project: businesses and community organizations come and go. Need to keep updated photographs. The video project includes putting together a short film of Devon Ave. and any video work related to the project (e.g. interviews).
- Historical research: this may include archival work, but the emphasis here is to examine secondary literature related to urban history, Chicago history, related projects in other cities (see: http://invinciblecities.camden.rutgers.edu/intro.html).
- Demographic research: government archives and documents to trace past and present of Devon Ave. and Rogers Park and West Ridge Districts.
Those interested in the internship should contact Professor John Pincince (jpincince@luc.edu).
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