1st NALC Convention

Through a series of pans in black and white, “1st NALC Convention” etches the landscape of a convention gathering. Opposed to recording the convention’s content, “1st NALC Convention” focuses on the event’s attendees jostling and networking around the space. A significant amount of visual noise instills a level of ambiguity deterring detail of who or what exactly transpires. If the title suggests that this was the first NALC National Convention that JoAnn Elam attended, the footage most certainly takes place during the second NALC National Convention Elam went to as a delegate for Chicago’s Branch 11 in Atlanta, GA in 1980. The NALC National Convention is a biennial event where delegates from all the branches of this letter carriers’ union gather to discuss their national policy. During her time as a postal worker in Chicago, Elam was a delegate for at least three of these conventions in 1978 (Chicago), 1980 (Atlanta), and 1982 (San Francisco).