About Us
WHO ARE WE?
Preserving Life Histories of LGBTQ Individuals and Allies
In November 2017, the Red River Rainbow Seniors conducted our first interview for our oral history project, “Breaking Barriers: Harvesting LGBTQ Stories from the Northern Plains.” We are creating a permanent record about our lives as LGBTQ people who grew up or lived in North Dakota and Northwestern Minnesota from the 1930s to the present. 
Although we were a hidden minority viewed negatively because of cultural and religious attitudes, our stories reflect a “pioneer generation” who blazed new paths, broke new ground, wrote new rules, provided new models for all people in our shared community.
One-on-one interviews collecting the life histories of LGBTQ individuals from our region and their allies are the centerpieces of our project. Our interviews cover topics such as family background, experiences of school and college, coming out stories, LGBTQ social life, community engagement, and life reflections.
By the end of 2023, we have interviewed close to 200 people, ranging in age from their 50s to their 80s. While many live in the Fargo-Moorhead area, our narrators live throughout our region including, for example, Jamestown, Bismarck, Grand Forks, Fergus Falls, Detroit Lakes, Bemidji and many of the small communities around these regional centers. We have also completed remote interviews with former area residents who now live in Nevada, Iowa, Michigan, California, Texas, Oregon and Maryland. We currently have a list of over 200 additional people we hope to interview, a number that continues to grow.
Bringing the “Breaking Barriers: Harvesting LGBTQ Stories from the Northern Plains” to the Public
Once we complete an interview, it is transcribed and the original digital files, transcripts and other materials (photographs, personally important documents, etc.) are deposited in the North Dakota State University Archives. With narrators’ permission, the transcriptions and digital files are made available on Digital Horizons, an online collection “depicting life on the Northern Plains.” These materials are available to all members of the public including family members, educators & librarians, healthcare providers, LGBTQ advocacy groups, local and regional historians, researchers, and anyone else interested in learning about our region’s history. According to the narrators’ wishes, some interviews and transcriptions are restricted for a period of years, or unavailable until the person’s death.
On a Podcast
One example of how the collection has been brought to the public is through the “Breaking Barriers” podcast done by Skip Wood at Prairie Public Radio. He utilized the digital interviews to create several short portraits of life as an LGBTQ person in North Dakota. These are available for your listening pleasure here.
An Exhibit
In 2021, we partnered with the Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County to create a focused oral history project documenting the tenth anniversary of the legalizing of same-sex marriage in the state of Minnesota. We interviewed those couples who married at midnight on August 1, 2013, the judges and other court personnel, the witnesses and guests of the couples and others. Utilizing these interviews, the HCSCC team developed the exhibit “At Last: Tenth Anniversary of Marriage Equality in Minnesota,” which is available to the public August 1, 2023, through August 2024. Admission to the exhibit is free of charge.
Giving Presentations
We have created the presentation “Breaking Barriers: Harvesting LGBTQ Stories from the Northern Plains: Three Journeys.” In this presentation, we use voices of three of our early narrators to tell the story of growing up and living in North Dakota and Northwestern Minnesota. These stories introduce key themes: the experiences of coming out, developing a “family of choice,” creating social community, experiences of discrimination (bullying, job loss, estrangement from family, etc.), and the strength and resilience of these individuals.
We have presented this in libraries, businesses, city committee meetings, churches, healthcare personnel gatherings, among others. If you would be interested in arranging for us to give our presentation for your organization, please contact us.
Participating in Regional Pride Festivals
Each year we bring our project to the public by attending Pride Festivals throughout North Dakota and Northwestern Minnesota. In the past, we have attended FM Pride in the Park, Fergus Falls Pride, Detroit Lakes Pride in the Park, and Bemidji Pride in the Park. For 2024, we anticipate adding Grand Forks Pride in the Park, Capital Pride in Bismarck-Mandan and Lake Areas Pride in the Park in Alexandria. We also attend the annual ND LGBTQ+ Summit that takes place in October in Bismarck-Mandan.
We invite you to stop by our table to meet us and learn more about our local activities. Perhaps you will even sign up for an interview!
THE PEOPLE WHO MAKE OUR PROJECT POSSIBLE
Our Oral History Committee
The Red River Rainbow Seniors Oral History Committee provides oversight to the project and ensures that candidates are identified, interviews are conducted, transcribing is completed, and reviewed materials are delivered to the NDSU Archives. As we expand into the regional centers, we ensure that we develop strong partnerships with local leaders who will ensure that those who wish to share their stories are able to do so. We also offer presentations and respond to questions from the public. The current members of the Oral History Committee are:
Larry Peterson
Project Coordinator
Tammy Lanaghan
Assistant Project Coordinator & Principal Transcriber
Micah Louwagie
Liaison to the Transgender Community
Jonathan Rundquist
NDSU Archives Cataloger & Bemidji Center Representative
Hannah Vanorny
Bismarck-Mandan Center Representative
The work of the Oral History Committee benefits from the input of our Oral History Consultant, Dr. Angela Smith, Professor of History, North Dakota State University. The current committee members wish to express our gratitude for the gifts and support of the founding members of this project: Dr. Mark Chekola, Maxine Fagerland, Dr. Rebecca Gardner, Dr. Larry Peterson, and Robert Stone.
Our Trained Volunteer Interviewers
This project cannot succeed without the dedication of our team of interviewers. Presently, we have 12 volunteer interviewers who are trained in oral history interviewing protocols. Many of our interviewers are based in Fargo-Moorhead. We are developing partnerships in three regional centers: Bismarck-Mandan, Grand Forks, and Bemidji. We expect to identify and train interviewers in these regional centers. We also have two affiliated interviewers in the Twin Cities region. Many people from our region elect to move to the Twin Cities region for employment. These two Twin Cities-based interviewers are available to these individuals if they so wish.
Fargo-Moorhead Regional Center
Bemidji Regional Center
Grand Forks Regional Center
Bismarck-Mandan Regional Center
Twin Cities Regional Center
SOME OF THE 150+ INTERVIEWED
