Introduction
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the lives of every Paterson citizen. Whether you are an essential worker who continues to go out into the world, a student going to school remotely, or someone who has lost your income because of the quarantine restrictions, your experiences are a part of Paterson’s Pandemic.
The Paterson Free Public Library, in partnership with the Paterson Museum, is gathering a collection of stories to act as a city-wide memoir of the COVID-19 pandemic in our city. If you live, work, or go to school in Paterson, we are asking you to help us create this chronicle by sharing with us your stories – either through written account, photos, or video. We will post the items we receive on the internet, as a virtual archive, to share the experiences of the Pandemic in Paterson with each other and the world.
What We Are Looking For
Written Accounts – You can write out your thoughts, concerns, and experiences for us. We ask that you keep your written accounts to 1000 words (or two pages).
Photographs – Share a photo or photos that tell us about your COVID-19 experience. Please be sure to include a short caption telling us a bit about what is in the photo. Please keep the size of each photograph to 25 MB or smaller.
Videos – Tell us what you are experiencing with your own voice by sharing a video of you or your family at work or play during the pandemic. Don’t forget to include a short caption to let us know what your video includes. Videos should not be longer than five minutes and should not exceed a 25 MB file size.
We invite our contributors to write or speak in whatever language they are most comfortable, as the diversity of its citizens is a huge part of Paterson’s identity.
By submitting your stories in any of the above formats to this project, you are consenting for the Library and/or Museum to hold this item within our archives. You are also consenting to its use in this and any future exhibitions of the collection, without expectation of any monetary or other compensation.
The Paterson Library and Paterson Museum would like to make clear to all contributors that their staff have final say on the selection of those items that will be posted.
We request that all submissions include your first and last name, age, occupation, and ward/neighborhood. Please let us know if you would like this information to remain private/internal or if you would like your details to be listed online with your contribution.
