Oral History Interview with Catherine Harris: Video, Eugene Lesbian Oral History Project

Title: Oral History Interview with Catherine Harris: Video, Eugene Lesbian Oral History Project
LC Subject: Lesbianism Lesbian community
Local Collection ID: Coll 520
Repository: University of Oregon. Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Interviewee: Harris, Catherine
Interviewer: Long, Linda, 1956- Raiskin, Judith L.
Description: The Eugene Lesbian Oral History Project collection consists of interviews of 83 people for the Eugene Lesbian Oral History Project, conducted by Professor Judith Raiskin and Curator Linda Long at the University of Oregon starting in the summer of 2018.
Abstract: Catherine was born in Omaha, Nebraska, but grew up in southern California, where she knew from an early age she was drawn to the spiritual dimension of life and also that she especially loved the energy of women. Her father was from Albany, Oregon. She went to college at the University of California, Berkeley in 1966. She protested the Vietnam War and was arrested. After college, she did various jobs, including working on a fishing boat and as a school bus driver in San Francisco, and met some great lesbians. She spent some time in Mexico and Central America, and then moved to Eugene in 1976. She studied astrology and participated in women’s spirituality circles. She discusses mystically-inclined women. Catherine became the manager of Peralandra Bookstore, which was on East 11th and Alder, and bought it in 1979. In Eugene, Catherine had short-lived lesbian relationships. This was a very rich time in her life. She discusses the cultural character of Eugene. Later, she opened herself up to other possibilities and met a man, Ross. She discusses “hasbians,” lesbians who formed relationships with a man. In her case, she felt that identifying as bisexual was more honest to who she is. She discusses the attitudes lesbians have about hasbians. Catherine has been a serious student of Buddhism. She concludes her interview by discussing the Aquarian energy in Eugene.
Subject: Aging; Bisexuality; Feminist bookstores; Gertrude’s Café (restaurant); Mama’s Home Fried Truck Stop; Mother Kali’s Books; Wild Iris (restaurant).
Location: University of Oregon >> Lane County >> Oregon >> United States
Date: 2018-08-22
Identifier: Coll520_do024
Rights: In Copyright
Dc Rights Holder: University of Oregon Libraries
Local Collection Name: Eugene Lesbian Oral History Project
Type: Moving Image
Format: video/mp4
Set: Eugene Lesbian Oral History Project
Institution: University of Oregon