The Documenting the Arc Oral History Collection is a series of video oral history interviews conducted between fall 2021 and summer 2022 by Dr. Millicent Brown and Cedar Wolf Media using grant funds from the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation. The interviews document the experiences of activists, organizers, artists, clergy, journalists, and other community members who were members or affiliates of Black Lives Matter Charleston (2014-2018) and other local grassroots organizations in Charleston, South Carolina. The oral histories center the period surrounding the shooting of Walter Scott, the massacre at Mother Emanuel AME Church and interviewees’ responses to the tragedies.  

On April 4th, 2015 Walter Scott was shot in the back and murdered by former North Charleston Police Officer Michael Slager. The incident was witnessed and recorded by Feidin Santana, a local barber and business owner who was on his way to work at the time. Later that year, on June 17th, 2015, nine community members were murdered while attending Bible study at Mother Emanuel AME Church by white supremacist Dylann Roof. Those killed are collectively known as the Emanuel 9. The Emanuel 9 includes Clementa C. Pinckney, Cynthia Graham Hurd, Susie Jackson, Ethel Lee Lance, Depayne Middleton-Doctor, Tywanza Sanders, Daniel L. Simmons, Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, a pastor, and Myra Thompson. Felicia Sanders, Jennifer Pinckney and Polly Sheppard were also present at the Bible Study that night but were not physically harmed by Roof.  

Oral history Interviews for the project were conducted with the following individuals: Daron Lee Calhoun, II, Brandon Fish, Akua Page, Jessica Parks, Erica Veal, Latisha Imara, Thomas Dixon, KJ Kearney, Jason Gourdine, Damon Fordham, Giovanni Richardson, Aisha Gallion, Talim Lessane, Clara Benson, Kamau Pope, Benny Starr, Vanity Reid-Deterville, Brenda Peart, Donald Cid, Kenya Cummings, Paul Bowers, Treva Williams, Kaj Brian, Feidin Santana, Gavin McIntyre, Shanalea Forrest, Jeremy Rutledge, Melissa Moore, Marcus Amaker and Hadis Abdus Samad. During their oral histories, interviewees reflected on topics like where they were and what they were doing when the tragedies took place, the actions, events and campaigns they participated in during the aftermath of the tragedies, and their experiences working with the late Muhiyidin d’Baha (1985-2018). D'Baha was the cofounder and lead organizer for Black Lives Matter Charleston, who was killed in New Orleans, Louisiana on February 6th, 2018 while on vacation with his partner Erica Veal.