[Virtual] Archival Silences: Uncovering Queer Stories
October 8 @ 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Join us for a virtual panel discussion on uncovering LGBTQ+ stories in archives and historical collections.
Archives preserve traces of the past, but those traces are shaped by who was able to document their lives, what institutions chose to preserve, and the language used to describe them. For LGBTQ+ people—particularly those who lived before contemporary identities and terminology existed—the historical record can be fragmentary, ambiguous, or silent.
Join Mount Auburn Cemetery and Queer History Boston for a conversation about the challenges and possibilities of uncovering queer stories in the archives. Our panelists will consider how historians, archivists, artists, and community researchers interpret the evidence that survives—and how they navigate the gaps, uncertainties, and assumptions that come with it.
Moderator:
Corinne Elicona has worked at Mount Auburn for nine years in many different roles including natural burial volunteer, administration assistant, and crematory operator. She is currently Mount Auburn’s Associate Director of Education & Visitor Services, working on creating educational content on Mount Auburn; its history, landscape, and legacy. She is passionate about fostering a positive discourse around death and promoting education around end-of-life choices and equity so that everyone can experience a good death.
Panelists:
Sara Jordenö is an award-winning visual artist, filmmaker, curator, and researcher based in Boston. Their interdisciplinary practice explores memory, testimony, collaboration, and the ethics of representation through film, public art, and archival research. Jordenö is currently a 2026–27 Artist-in-Residence at Mount Auburn Cemetery, where their project explores queer memory and the fear of erasure after death.
Joan Ilacqua is the Executive Director of Queer History Boston. Through her work collecting oral histories, preserving archival records, and sharing personal stories, Joan’s work ensures that communities that have been on the margins of history are centered. She serves on the Community Archives Collaborative Steering Committee and the City of Boston’s Commemoration Commission. Joan is a graduate of UMass Boston’s Public History master’s program, and earned her Bachelor of Arts at the University of Puget Sound. In her free time, Joan likes to read queer romance novels, play Magic the Gathering with her wife, and design subversive cross-stitch patterns. You can learn more about Joan’s work at ilacquajoan.com.
Hilary Clifford has been working as an archivist for over 10 years and came to Mount Auburn Cemetery as the Digital Archivist for the Historical Collections and Archives in February of 2026. Most recently she was head archivist for the AIDS Healthcare Foundation in Los Angeles and served on the Advisory Committee for The LGBT Community Center Archives in New York. Originally from Grafton, MA, she is excited to be back in her home state and working at such an important cultural institution.
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Refunds and exchanges for events at Mount Auburn Cemetery are available up to 5 business days prior to the event.* Cancellations made after this deadline are not eligible for a refund and the order amount will be donated to support future programs and initiatives.
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