University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries Magazine 2018 Fall Libraries Magazine | Page 8

Madison Reunion:
Bringing the 60s Back Home
By Natasha Veeser
S
ummer 2018: Madison took a trip back
in time to “Bring the 60s Back Home,”
thanks to the Madison Reunion. The event
not only highlighted the transformative role
Madison played 50 years ago in theater, film,
and general creativity, but also its impact on
social justice causes. As part of the event, the
University of Wisconsin–Madison Libraries,
the University Archives, and Madison Public
Library partnered with event organizers,
including well-known musician Ben Sidran to
collect stories for a documentary about those
who lived and experienced the Madison of
the 1960s.
“It’s a cliché to say if you don’t know your
history you’re doomed to repeat it,” said
Sidran, “but in these times, when so many
people are traumatized by the news and
polarized by social media, coming together
and talking about important issues may
be old fashioned, but it’s a good way to go
forward with a new sense of purpose and a
continued sense of humor.”
The University Archives and Madison
Public Library helped leaders of the Madison
8 | LIBRARIES Fall 2018
Reunion gather individual stories and
experiences from the 1960s through video and
oral recordings. The project’s structure was
similar to the efforts of the Archives’ “Dow
50” public history project in October of 2017,
when a team held a multi-day opportunity
at the Madison Public Library to record the
memories of individuals who experienced
the Dow Chemical demonstrations on UW–
Madison’s campus 50 years ago.
“The Dow 50 project showed us what could
be accomplished when we collaborated with
the public library and engaged students to
help us collect history through those who
experienced it,” said Troy Reeves, Head of
the Oral History Program at UW–Madison.
“We tried to replicate that at the Reunion as
we gathered stories from the attendees who
offered their time and their perspectives on
campus and in the community during the
1960s.”
Sidran, the organizing force behind the
Madison Reunion, recently joined forces with
the Libraries on another endeavor by giving
them his extensive personal archives.
“We truly appreciated the Sidrans for
giving us space inside the Union to pursue this
project. It gave us a front-row seat to witness
the impact Madison has on so many different
facets of our community,” said Reeves. “This
project gives us the unique opportunity
and responsibility to help document and
preserve the experiences and memories of
the events, and people, that make Madison
such a transformative force generation after
generation.”
Students, Archives, and
Madison Public Library staff
gather stories from witnesses
(Opposite page and left).
Visitors walk through an
exhibit on the events of the
1960s in Madison in Memorial
Union (below).
University of Wisconsin–Madison | 9