Archives West Finding Aid

Series 1 consists of administrative records generated by After 8 and other similar organizations. The series consists of communications, financial documents, meeting minutes, information on the organizational structure of the group, and documents produced during the group's planning retreats. Communications documents include organizational stationary, phone messages, listservs, and documentation of death threats and harassment faced by After 8. Financial documents consist primarily of treasury reports, tax forms, and grants.

Series 2 consists of records pertaining to After 8's activist campaigns. The group's activism has an emphasis on youth work, education, and anti-discrimination. The records include information on Benton County anti-discrimination policy, LGBT hate crime recognition work, a dispute with the local chapter of the Boy Scouts of America, After 8's involvement with local school board elections, the Ashbrook School lawsuit, and domestic partnership work. The series also includes two sizeable folders on Oregon Citizen's Alliance activities and media articles, and information on the Human Rights Coalition formed in collaboration with a number of After 8's members.

Series 3 contains records regarding After 8's community outreach. As stated by organizational co-founder Karuna Neustadt in her oral history interview for the Oregon State Queer archives, a central goal of the group was to gain greater visibility in the community. This series thus includes information about the group's speaker's bureau and related classes. Events represented in the series include "Opening Doors: A Conference for Professionals Who Work with Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Youth," held in 1997, the 1999 "Queers on Reels" film festival produced in collaboration with Corvallis' Avalon Cinema, and the Harvey Milk Awards Dinners, hosted by After 8 from 1990-1999. Also included in this series are a small number of newsletters published by the group in 2001.

Series 4 consists of press releases, advertisements, and articles created by and about After 8, and published in local publications such as the Corvallis Gazette-Times and the Albany Democrat-Herald. Of particular note are a series of published letters to the editor of the Gazette-Times written by After 8 co-founder Karuna Neustadt. Also included in the series are a number of articles collected by the group throughout the years on LGBT issues nationwide. These clippings include additional pieces from the Corvallis Gazette-Times, as well as from the Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, and the New York Times.

Series 5 consists of brochures, booklets, flyers, reports, and other resources either published or collected by After 8. Publications cover a wide range of special topics, including gays in the military, gay marriage, and transgender issues. Reports present in the series primarily consist of national reports on matters involving gay and lesbian youth, but also cover relevant legislation such as Colorado's proposed Amendment 2. Though some of these materials were distributed by After 8, many of them were collected for internal education purposes, including information and statistics on heterosexism and homophobia, and a number of resources on organizing and movement-building.

Series 6 consists of 28 undated photographs. Though unmarked, the photos appear to depict an event (or possibly two) hosted by After 8 in Corvallis, as well as photos taken of the adopt-a-highway sign sponsored by the group, and images of After 8 members participating in a march in Portland.

Series 8 consists of only one item: an audiocassette tape entitled "After 8 Threatening Calls" and dated 10/30/93. The group received a number of threatening calls and emails over the years, including death threats which were investigated by the Corvallis police. In her oral history interview, Karuna Neustadt describes the nature of these communications (00:44:19), and their impact on members of the group. Although there are about four to five inappropriate and/or graphic messages, the recording also includes a number of other miscellaneous messages. These include inquiries about love connections, contact from local organizations such as the Gazette-Times and Valley AIDS Information Network, and more.

A digital recording of the phone messages is available upon request. Threatening calls begin at 00:07:00 and end at 00:09:02.

Series 8 consists of activist apparel, as well as a variety of placards used at the Harvey Milk Awards dinners. Apparel in the series includes four t-shirts with activist slogans and one t-shirt with After 8's logo. Of particular note in this series is a collection of over one-hundred buttons and pins, some made and disseminated by After 8, and others collected from marches and other activist events around the nation.