Items

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  2020-05-12

  Elderly Man Must Keep Shop Open To Help Support Family in Alife, Italy

  I decided to share this image because it shows my grandmother’s (nonna’s) brother working in the family-owned shop that is located in Alife, Italy. This shop has been owned by my family since the early 1900s. My grandmother’s brother has worked in the shop since he was a little kid. My grandmother’s brother was forced to let his employees go because he simply could not afford to keep them as employees throughout the pandemic. To keep the shop open, he must work at the shop every day. The pandemic has been extremely difficult for him financially as this is his only means of income. I decided to upload this image because I think it will be valuable for future historians as it shows what life is like for elderly people in Italy during the pandemic. Many are unable to retire because they cannot afford to stop working. This item is an attempt to fill an archival silence and amplify the voices of a marginalized group because my grandmother’s brother is 75 years old and has decided to continue working during the pandemic because it is not financially possible to retire. He attempted to apply for the relief package but was not qualified for it and was denied. The pandemic has been extremely difficult for the elderly especially those that have underlying health conditions because they have to make the difficult decision to return to work which can be dangerous because they can be exposed to COVID. My grandmother’s brother is also a veteran and he is not technologically savvy therefore, it has been challenging for him to amplify his voice. This form of archival silence is an unintentional unacknowledged speech act.
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  2020-07-27

  Economic Relief Package For Homeowners in Alife, Italy

  I decided to include this screenshot of the economic relief package that homeowners that have a mortgage have the opportunity of receiving. I think it is interesting to discover what relief packages are offered in Alife, Italy compared to the United States of America. This is important to me because my family lives in Alife, Italy, and are homeowners that have mortgages and they have been financially affected by COVID-19. This item is of interest to future historians because it will help future historians understand what economic relief packages were offered to the citizens in the region of Campania Italy. Future historians will have a better understanding of how the economic relief packages in the United States of America compared to the economic relief packages in regions in other countries such as in Campania Italy which is the region that Alife is located. As the article entitled, “What archivists keep or not” documents are a great way to “help us remember, to share, to compare, to analyse and to synthesize information” (Thompson, 3).
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  2020-11-14

  Online Learning Notice in Alife, Italy

  Translation to the above newsletter - Activities in the presence of the childcare services and the first grades of primary school will resume from 24 November, after screening on a voluntary basis on teaching and non-teaching staff and on pupils. For different school levels and orders, the Regional Crisis Unit unanimously felt it was necessary to confirm distance learning. This newsletter explains the precautions that a small town in Italy is taking in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19. I think it is important to learn about what other countries are doing in order to keep the community safe. This is important to me because my family is from a small town in Italy called Alife. My family in Alife has younger children that have been directly affected by this new decision to move the school from in-person to online learning. This object demonstrates something significant about my generation under COVID because many children are being taught online rather than in person in order to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. As the article entitled “What do archivists keep or not” describes “documents of all types help us to remember, to share, to compare, to analyse and to synthesize information” *Thompson, 3). Documents are pivotal because they can create a snapshot of what life was like during a monumental event in history. Many of these children have never experienced online learning and therefore, it can be challenging for children to remain engaged and motivated to learn.
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  2020-05-12

  Occupancy Limits in Family-Owned Store in Small Town in Alife, Italy

  “ingresso permesso ad un massimo di 1 persona per volta” – Translation “admission allowed to a maximum of 1 person at a time” The image is of the front of the store that my family owns in a small town in Italy called Alife. Due to COVID-19, my family had to display signs which explain a change in the occupancy limit. It is interesting to see how the town has imposed occupancy restrictions that are similar to the restrictions in the United States of America. As described in the article “Professional Ethics for Archivists” this photo “provid[es] a baseline for measuring the present state of affairs” (Professional Ethics for Archivists, 22). This image was published to Facebook which has the ability to store more information than a brick-and-mortar location. This image responds to the needs and considerations of an ethical archival collection because it reflects the current social climate that business owners are experiencing across the world due to COVID-19.
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  2020-04-12

  How Families Interact During Covid-19

  This photo is of my family during one of our zoom meetings. My family lives in Italy and so this is the only way for my family to stay connected during the pandemic. We were planning to visit them in Italy during the summer, but we were unable to due to COVID. This photo demonstrates something significant about my generation under COVID because technology has allowed us to stay connected through the pandemic. A video call was a wonderful experience for the older members of my family because they were only able to send letters when they were younger and talk on the phone. Even though we are in the middle of a pandemic technology has truly allowed my generation to remain connected with our family and friends. As described in our reading “What do archivists keep or not” this is an example of a primary source because it is “tied to particular people doing particular things at [a] particular time and place” (Thompson, 3).
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  2020-04-01

  Covid Disinfection in Alife, Italy

  I decided to share this video because it will help future historians understand how a small town in Italy responded to the pandemic. This item is of interest to future historians because it shows how disinfecting the town center in a small town in Italy was deemed to be essential in order to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. This video is critical for future generations and historians because it will allow them to understand what measures were taken. Future historians can use this video and compare it to pandemics from previous generations and discover what protocols are similar. This video is important to me because my family is from a small town in Italy and it is interesting to see the steps that the town took in order to disinfect the town. I also found it interesting to compare how the United States of America disinfected its towns and how it is similar to the town of Alife.
• 
  2020-10-29

  Essentials that are hard to find during COVID-19

  I submitted this image because it represents the cleaning items that are essential in my life but have been hard to find because of COVID. Many people were restricted about how many Clorox wipes they could buy at the store. It was weird to go to the store and not find the cleaning products I need. When I found an item such as Lysol Laundry Sanitizer, I would send a text to my friends and family to let them know which store had them in stock. I would also try to buy several Lysol Laundry Sanitizers so that I could give them to my friends and family. Prior to COVID, cleaning products would not be a gift that you would give your friends and family, but it became a thoughtful item that you could give to your loved ones. For several weeks it was difficult for me to find Lysol laundry sanitizer. It was scary to go to the store and find the shelves empty. Luckily, I had already stockpiled prior to COVID so I had plenty for several months.