Protect History Open Letter

We see you!

An Open Letter To Our Friends And Partners

We know you are being challenged in unbelievable ways these days. We believe in the critical role you play. The work you do matters—maybe now more than ever.

There is a campaign underway to control the narrative of our past—an agenda that seeks not only to restrict access to historical records, but to reframe, rewrite, and selectively erase the stories that challenge a more convenient version of history.
At a time like this, access to local, firsthand historical records becomes more than a resource…it becomes a responsibility. And you understand this better than anyone.

Claim The $500 Credit Now And Protect Your History

To Our Friends and Partners,

I wanted to take a moment to let you know that we see you. We see the challenges you face with mounting political pressure, efforts to restrict access to information, and the growing fight over stories being removed, restricted, or reframed to fit a more convenient narrative.
Conversations about whose histories are preserved, how they are told, and who gets to tell them have never been more urgent. Across the country, decisions are being made—often under political and ideological pressure—about which stories should be shared and which are better off forgotten.
But here’s what we also know: YOU are the difference makers
We see the pressure you’re under. The headlines, the politics, the budget cuts, the shifting priorities, the silence from those who should be standing beside you. We see your efforts to do this work with fewer resources, even fewer hands, and more resistance than ever.
We also see your strength.
If anything, every attempt to erase, silence, or undermine the importance of your work has only made you stronger. More focused. More determined. Because this fight isn’t new to you — and neither is resilience.
You keep showing up. You keep pushing back against censorship, raising funds, telling the truth, and making sure the people in your community see themselves reflected in your mission.
And for that, we thank you!
You play a crucial role in ensuring that history reflects the full truth, not just the parts that are comfortable or convenient.
Access to historical records has never mattered more.

You Have Answered The Call

You Understand How The Past Puts The Present In Perspective...And Are Fighting To Ensure Its Accessible

Libraries, archives, and educators are on the front lines, fighting against efforts to erase, rewrite, or whitewash history. What’s at stake isn’t just the past—it’s the ability of future generations to learn from it, understand it, and ensure the full truth is never lost.

The stories of those who fought for justice, equality, and progress, along with the lived experiences of marginalized communities, once preserved in historical records, are under attack.
This is why your community’s primary sources—newspapers, letters, photographs, official records, and firsthand accounts—are essential to understanding history as it truly happened. These unfiltered materials provide direct insight into past events, free from later reinterpretation or bias.
Without them, history risks becoming a curated narrative rather than an honest record.

We Can't Let Access Disappear Without A Fight!

Your community’s primary sources offer unfiltered insight into struggle, progress, and identity. They are among our strongest defenses against distortion and erasure. Without access, history can be easily reframed or rewritten to serve a more convenient narrative.
The truth is at risk. We’re here to help you protect it.
To support your efforts to make local history accessible, we’re offering a free digital archive and $500 in digitization credit to help you take the first step.

You Share History As It Happened

Your Collections Allow Us To See Historical Events Through The Lens Of Those Who Witnessed It First Hand

Local collections don’t just tell stories. They preserve truth. They capture the voices of those who built the community, fought for justice, demanded change, and documented the everyday lives that make local history so powerful—and so necessary.
Your archives do far more than record dates and events—they capture the lived experiences of real people, preserving the full, unfiltered reality of history:

♦ They contain documents that record the brutality of slavery, the voices of the oppressed and the oppressors, and the long fight for and against abolition and justice.
♦ They reveal the human cost of wars, from the battlefields to the home front, exposing not only the acts of heroism and duty, but also destruction, displacement, and political maneuvering that shape conflicts.

♦ They hold accounts of corruption, scandals, abuses of power, and the struggles of ordinary people against exploitation.
♦ They tell the story of women’s rights—not just the victories for suffrage, workplace equality, and reproductive freedom, but also the moments when those rights were challenged, stripped away, or eroded.

♦ They document the fights for labor rights, fair wages, and safe working conditions, recording both the victories won and the backlashes that followed.
♦ They capture the struggles of immigrants seeking new beginnings, the policies that welcomed or excluded them, and the cultural contributions that have shaped our societies.

♦ They provide firsthand accounts of civil rights movements, the voices of those who marched, protested and demanded change, as well as the forces that resisted progress.
♦ They chronicle the evolution of education, from efforts to desegregate schools to debates over what should be taught in classrooms.

♦ They safeguard Indigenous histories, including treaties, land disputes, and the resilience of Native communities in the face of forced removal, cultural erasure, and systemic injustice.
♦ They record the history of public health crises, from pandemics to environmental disasters, revealing both the failures and triumphs in protecting communities.
♦ They preserve the fight for LGBTQ+ rights, the milestones of progress, the battles still being fought, and the efforts to erase these histories.
♦ They document the impact of social movements, from anti-war activism to climate justice, showing how collective action has shaped policy and public discourse.

These records are reminders that history is cyclical, that progress is never guaranteed, and that the choices we make today are shaped by the struggles and sacrifices of those who came before us.
Your collections preserve the voices of those who bore witness to change, fought for justice, and documented both the struggles and triumphs that shaped our communities. They are the evidence that holds history accountable.
These materials in your archives do more than help us remember; they help us learn, question, and grow. They show us how oppression is justified, how movements for justice are built, and how power is wielded—sometimes for progress, sometimes for control.

Like You, We Believe In Equitable Access

Your Collections Enable Every Individual To See Themselves Reflected In Their Community’s Story

Diversity, equity, and inclusion are not threats. They are essential!

A complete historical record includes everyone, or it fails everyone.

The importance of open and equitable access to historical records cannot be overstated. When accessibility to local history is threatened, communities lose more than just documents—they lose the full context of their past.
Limiting access does not just rewrite history; it weakens public understanding, hinders civic engagement, and erodes critical thinking. The more history is controlled, the more fragile our collective memory becomes.
We know that in today’s political climate, some have turned the acronym DEI into a divisive dog whistle. However, diversity, equity, and inclusion are not political concepts—they are fundamental values that strengthen communities.
When archives preserve diverse stories, ensure fair access to the past, and invite everyone to see themselves in history, they don’t just document a community—they help it grow, connect, and thrive.

What You Do Matters!

We believe in the critical role you play.

For those of you on the front lines—As these conversations grow more urgent, so does our collective responsibility. Libraries, archives, historians, and advocates must continue to defend open access to historical records and primary sources, invest in local digitization, and ensure that history remains available to all—without censorship, without restriction, without exceptions.
But know that you are not alone. We stand with you. We believe in the critical role you play. The work you do matters—maybe now more than ever.

With unrestricted access to historical records, we can fully understand how we got here and where we are headed by carefully studying where we have been.
We see you.
We admire you.
And we want to stand with you!

You Don't Have To Do It Alone

We Want You To Know That We Are Here For You And Want To Support You However We Can

We want you to know that our entire team stands ready to support your efforts.
After all, we built Advantage Archives on the belief that local history should be freely accessible—no paywalls, no subscriptions, no barriers that separate a community from its past.
We believe local history belongs to the communities it comes from. Every person should have full access to the stories that shaped their hometown, without interference or selective interpretation. Historical truth should never be rewritten or obscured to serve political agendas.

We Want To Help You Protect Your Community's History With A FREE Archive and a $500 Credit

Your community’s stories deserve to be accessible. We want to extend our support to help you ensure they are.

Partner with us to provide access to your community's past!

In a time of restriction and revision, public access is our collective responsibility.
Let’s accept this responsibility together.
We want to help you provide access to your community’s history before others to decide whose story is told and how it is shared.

When access to historical records is open and unrestricted, we’re better equipped to understand how we got here—and where we’re going—by honestly examining where we’ve been.
You’ve found yourself in the position of defending these records — standing between history and those who would decide which stories are remembered and which are left behind. That’s no small task, and we don’t take it for granted.
Thank you for your continued commitment to making all people’s stories accessible.
With deep gratitude and unwavering solidarity,
Jeffrey Kiley
Founder – Advantage Archives
Ensuring Our Past Has Future

Help Us Bring The Past To The Present

Primary sources—local newspapers, photographs, school records, meeting minutes, oral histories, land deeds—these aren’t dusty artifacts. They’re proof.
They’re the receipts of lived experience. They allow communities to see themselves in the record, not as footnotes or sidebars, but as central participants in the American story.
We want to help you create access to these collections.

Qualifying Non-Profits Will Receive:

A Digital Platform For Your Collection

We will provide you with a digital archive that anyone can access anytime, from anywhere, on any device, at no cost to the public or your institution.

A $500 Credit To Help Get You Started

We want to help you take the first step in unlocking your community's past, so we will give you a $500 credit to apply to digitizing your local history materials.

Unrestricted, Free Access For Everyone

Anyone can access the Community History Archives for free. No subscriptions, no paywalls, and no barriers between your community and its history.

A Partner To Support You In Every Phase

We collaborate with you from planning to launch and beyond. Hosting, storage, maintenance, and development are all included - at no cost to your institution.