Our Researcher Profile series highlights researchers and who have used resources in Special Collections & Archives for a variety of projects ranging from articles and books to exhibits and documentaries and more.
This week's post focuses on the work of Dr. Tyler Parry, Associate Professor of African American and African Diaspora Studies in UNLV's Department of Interdisciplinary, Gender, and Ethnic Studies. He is the author of Jumping the Broom: The Surprising Multicultural Origins of a Black Wedding Ritual (2020), co-editor of Invisible No More: The African American Experience at the University of South Carolina (2021), and author of numerous other essays and articles that have appeared in Journal of African American History, the Journal of Southern History, Past and Present, Slavery and Abolition, The Washington Post, Jacobin, Black Perspectives, and the Nevada Independent.
Tell us a little bit about the project (book, exhibit, article, documentary, report) you researched in Special Collections & Archives.
I am writing a book tentatively entitled Policing Sin City: A History of State Violence and Community Resistance in Las Vegas, Nevada. It provides the first extended examination of Las Vegas policing from the perspectives of community members and activists who challenged instances of police harassment, brutality, and misconduct throughout the city’s history. A large section of the book analyzes the relationships between police and the residents of the “Historic Westside,” a majority-Black community before and after the city’s desegregation. Methodologically, this study prioritizes a community-based narrative of law enforcement in southern Nevada, analyzing how citizens themselves described the tools of harassment, surveillance, and brutality used by officers that led to significant distrust between the police and marginalized people in different eras of the city’s history. Using a chronological approach ranging from the 1930s into the 2020s, I assess how the police state in this young western city was tied to national politics that saw increased spending to police budgets, which allowed the expansion of militarization and heavy-handed forms of surveillance under the guise that the government was engaged in a “War on Drugs” by the 1980s. I argue that Las Vegas policing was always a part of, not apart from, national trends of militarized policing, reflecting similar currents of state violence often associated with much older, and larger, cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York.
How did you hear about Special Collections & Archives?
As an alumnus of UNLV (B.A. History, 2008), I always knew about the Special Collections and its location in the Library. During my last year at UNLV I was fortunate to win the Lance and Elena Calvert Award, and I remember the recognition ceremony took place in Special Collections. However, my research interests in my younger days were transnational topics and I rarely engaged in local history. Hence, I rarely visited UNLV’s Special Collections for research.
As discussions about policing dominated local, national, and international media outlets throughout the Summer of 2020, I decided to investigate the local history of Las Vegas policing to see the depth of community activism against police brutality in this young, western city. As a professional historian who loves to visit archives (which, I should note, was an increasingly difficult pursuit during the pandemic), it made sense to start at UNLV’s Special Collections as my primary reference point. Since Lied Library is only a five-minute walk from my office at UNLV, I am able to consistently visit and pour through manuscripts and other documents to uncover this history.
What resources, collections or materials from Special Collections & Archives were most impactful for your research?
It’s hard to narrow them down, given I found many collections so useful. But three collections stand out, including those of former Las Vegas mayor Oran Gragson, former NAACP President Donald Clark, and former Senator Howard Cannon. Each of these collections provide crucial material about the tumultuous decade of the 1960s, and of particular interest are the correspondences held in each of them. Clark, in particular, actively investigated instances of discrimination and police brutality, providing an insider’s view of how he sought accountability for state abuses. Gragson and Cannon also have useful collections of correspondence, though their most interesting letters are from their constituents. These letters allow me to gauge the pulse of the community during some of the most significant turning points in the city’s history, specifically the 1969 Westside Uprising and desegregation programs.
How did you become interested in the topic(s) you wrote about?
I was born and raised in Las Vegas, but I always bought into the typical ethos that Las Vegas, as a young city on the move, is a place devoid of any deep-rooted history outside the existence of organized crime and the expansion of gaming resorts. But shortly after I moved back to Las Vegas in the Summer of 2019 I started to include material about local history in the courses I taught within the African American and African Diaspora Studies Program. I found that many of my students, despite most of them being local, similarly had little historical knowledge of the city they call home. And, as questions surrounding police reform and abolition griped the country’s attention throughout the early 2020s, I decided to use my historical training to examine the institution of policing in southern Nevada.
What surprised you the most about your research in Special Collections & Archives?
I was actually surprised at how much is available to research on this topic, and, it seems, how much of the story remains to be told. The level of detail in many of these collections is simply astounding.
What advice would you give to other authors/researchers using Special Collections & Archives? (Otherwise known as what I wish someone had told me before I visited Special Collections & Archives)
Special Collections can be a bit intimidating when you first visit. It is not because anybody is particularly mean (in fact, the whole staff is truly wonderful and welcoming), it is largely due to the fact that this area is highly specialized and usually rather quiet. It’s different than most conventional libraries that are filled with people. So, you should feel empowered to ask the staff questions if you do not initially know how to approach the research subject. The archivists within Special Collections know the documents better than anyone else, and in my experience they REALLY like to help people with these resources. I’ve found so many hidden gems simply because I asked them questions. Finding Aids are also available online, which is very helpful for research preparation. They help you target certain boxes and folders that are most relevant to your research questions.
How did your research in Special Collections & Archives change your perceptions about Las Vegas?
It generated a new sense of pride within me, in that I now know I am from a city with such a deep tradition of protest and activism, instead of simply believing that the only defining characteristic of Las Vegas is fast money and libertarian approaches to economics. My hope is that my work helps inspire new generations of young people in this city to envision a better world, just as the pioneers of civil rights in Las Vegas did before. I think it provides a completely different understanding of a place that is often viewed from very superficial vantage points.
What are you working on next?
I have a few ideas in mind. As I’ve researched material on Las Vegas policing I’ve been simultaneously collecting references to the famous Moulin Rouge, widely known as Las Vegas’ first integrated resort and casino that opened in the 1950s. I’d like to write a social and cultural history of this iconic symbol. And though many people have examined this topic, I’ve found a number of resources in UNLV’s Special Collections, and other archives, that provide some unique dimensions for how the Moulin Rouge symbolizes race relations in Las Vegas and what we can still learn about the present from the past. Secondly, I have an idea for a tentatively titled book, A People’s History of Las Vegas, inspired by my research on grassroots community activism.
If you are from out of town, what other places did you visit (could be other sites for research, restaurants, etc.)
Even though I am not from out of town, I would like to shout out the Cahlan Research Library at the Nevada State Museum. Cahlan had some great collections on this topic, and the archivists were extraordinarily kind and helpful.
What is the biggest challenge you faced while working on your project?
Writer’s block and time management. It’s truly the worst part of this process. Regardless of how much you love the project, it inevitably happens.
What advice would you give other authors?
Stay the course. I am one of those authors who DOES NOT research and write every day, as many researchers claim to do. It just doesn’t work for me. So, research and write at your own pace, but don’t give up on the process. If I can write a book, you can, too.
