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| Letizia C De Rosa receiving the Sydney PEN Award in 2012. |
Today, the International Day of the Imprisoned Writer, we pause to recognise and support writers who resist repression of the basic human right to freedom of expression. This special day, initiated by PEN International (a worldwide association of writers, founded in London in 1921 to promote friendship and intellectual cooperation among writers) is intimately linked to a new and exciting archive currently in development at the JCU Library Special Collections – The De Rosa Archive.
North Queensland writer and publisher, Director of Book Creators Circle (BCC) and JCU Alumna - Letizia C De Rosa - first offered to donate rare and fragile materials relevant to the history of North Queensland to the JCU Library in 2019. Since then she has been working with the Special Collections team to shape the De Rosa Archive and tell the story of the significance of the materials. Letizia has worked to create both informative descriptions for each item, plus a 145,000+ word document (in development) which provides a social commentary and comprehensive context for the materials. The Special Collections team trust that this will assist future researchers who will come to use the Archive held in the Eddie Koiki Mabo Library, JCU Bebegu Yumba Campus, Townsville.
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| Sample of materials in the developing De Rosa Archive, 2024. |
The De Rosa Archive will consist of three distinct parts – firstly material relating to the history of the De Rosa family. Letizia’s parents relocated from Italy to Cairns in the 1950s and built, lived in and ran a guesthouse in the city centre of Cairns for 50 years. The archive will include historic family photographs, volumes and documents which capture the immigrant experience in North Queensland.
Secondly, it includes material (e.g. promotional items, photographs) pertaining to the not-for-profit writer’s and book industry organization - Book Creators Circle (BCC) of which Letizia was the founder and Director from 2007 to 2013. BCC gave writers and other book creators a voice through global connectivity using new technology at the time such as a pioneering website (now archived by Pandora – the National Library of Australia’s Web Archive) and the then new social media channels. International members originated from the USA, Italy and the UK. Conferences were also held which encouraged networking and collaboration between members. Through her work with BCC, Letizia became involved with PEN International and was their Ambassador in Australia for a number of years. In 2012 her work was acknowledged when she received the Sydney PEN International Award for her commitment and support for PEN’s aims. Letizia has stated, “The reason I started BCC was to give writers a voice and for them to feel neither silenced nor ostracised.”
The third component of the archive contains a selection of Letizia’s unpublished writings as original, hand-written manuscripts. This will include a series of researched and dedicated tributes titled “Unsung Women” acknowledging the contribution of a wide range of North Queensland, Australian, and international women. The De Rosa Archive touches on historic and current issues including women, children and migration.
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| Letizia C De Rosa and Bronwyn McBurnie (Manager, Special Collections) at the Donor’s Appreciation Day held in the Eddie Koiki Mabo Library during February 2024. |
The Library Archives Collection is one of twelve different special collections held by JCU Library. The De Rosa Archive will become part of the Library Archives Collection which contains primary records - that is original, first-hand records. In the development of the De Rosa Archive the team has had the rare opportunity to work with the donor on the arrangement and contextualisation of the archival materials. A full list of the Library Archives is available here. Currently the Library staff are creating a presence for all the Archives in NQHeritage@JCU - the online repository for the Special Collections.
It is through the generosity of community members such as Letizia C De Rosa that the Special Collections continue to grow and develop – documenting the complex and fascinating history of North Queensland. Researchers of all kinds are invited to access the Special Collections by booking a visit or making an online enquiry.
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