A. Peter Bailey Oral History Interview: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

An oral history interview and conversation with journalist Alfonso Peter Bailey. It consists of three versions of a digital video recording, two camera card files (2025.12.1.1.1 and 2025.12.1.1.2, .mxf files) and one edited file (2025.12.1.1.3, .mov file).

Mr. A. Peter Bailey was interviewed by University of Maryland student Rebekah Otto on May 23rd, 2023, as part of the Social Justice Conversations Oral History Project. The interview took place at Mr. Bailey’s home in the Shaw neighborhood of Washington, DC. At the time of the interview, Mr. Bailey was 85 years old.

This oral history interview with Mr. A. Peter Bailey consists of two distinct sections: an “interview” section (part 1) and a “conversation” section (part 2, 01:19:11). In part 1, Mr. Bailey discusses his upbringing in Tuskegee, Alabama, his experiences in the segregated south, and his adolescent years in Germany. He describes his time in the military, his political evolution, and his time as a student at Howard University. He remembers his move to New York, meeting Malcolm X, and his time with the Organization of Afro-American Unity (OAAU) where he worked on the organization’s publication, Blacklash. His first story for the publication covered the 1964 shooting death of 15-year-old James Powell and the subsequent Harlem Uprising. Finally, Mr. Bailey speaks extensively about Malcolm X’s life, including Bailey's eyewitness account of the assassination at Audubon Ballroom (1:05:38), and the continuing effects of Malcolm X’s influence. In part 2, Mr. A. Peter Bailey and Rebekah Otto discuss the importance of Black history, key historical figures, life in Alaska, and family. Mr. A. Peter Bailey concludes with his advice for young activist-writers and his final thoughts for all watching.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: May 23, 2023
• Created by: National Museum of African American History and Culture, American, founded 2003
• Recorded by: Trudy Hutcherson, American
• Recorded by: Kim Moir, American
• Edited by: Candace Dane Chambers, American
• Interviewed by: Rebekah Simcha Otto
• Interview of: A. Peter Bailey, American, born 1938
• Subject of: St. Joseph Catholic School, American, 1944 - 2020
• Subject of: United States Army, American, founded 1775
• Type: video recordings
• Type: oral histories
• Type: digital media - born digital
• Medium: digital
• Dimensions: Duration (2025.12.1.1.3, edited): 1 hr., 58 min., 20 sec.
• Dimensions: File size: 185 GB
• Place filmed: Washington, District of Columbia, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Tuskegee, Macon County, Alabama, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Fürth, Germany, Europe
• Place depicted: Harlem, New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Monument Avenue, Richmond, Virginia, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Alaska, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Activism
• Topic: American South
• Topic: Catholicism
• Topic: Civil Rights
• Topic: Communication
• Topic: Communities
• Topic: Education
• Object number: 2025.12.1.1
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.