The HCAC public history focused digital archive cataloging is an ongoing process, and we may update this record as we conduct additional research and review. We welcome your comments and feedback if you have more information to share about an item featured on the site, please contact us at: HCAC-DigiTeam@si.edu
Ashanti Alston, a Black Liberation Army (BLA) member who was imprisoned for 11 years for a robbery to raise money for the BLA, says that he is getting big and his beard is too. He mentions his attempt to draw Nina Simone and says that the photo is two years old. The note is dated September 17th with no year listed.
A cover photograph from the Court News Section of the newspaper The Home News featuring members of the defense team for Assata Shakur (JoAnne Chesimard) who was on trial for the 1973 killing of a state trooper. Shakur was convicted in 1977 of killing the state trooper during a shootout, escaped prison in 1979, and is still wanted by the FBI.
A paper by Dr. Mutulu Shakur arguing that the Black nation in the imperialistic United States is a captive nation and thus must look at the situation and solutions through the lens of international law. Dr. Shakur wrote this from prison, where he was serving a 60 year sentence for his role in a Black Liberation Army (BLA) led robbery in 1981.
A paper by a student in Frankye Adams-Johnson (Malika)'s English 101 class about the history of the Black Panther Party. The author argues that the members of the Black Panther Party were not born revolutionaries, but were forced into this mind set by the oppressive ways of American society and deemed all of their actions necessary for liberation.
A paper by Dr. Mutulu Shakur that argues the existence of political prisoners reveals the violations of human rights perpetuated by the United States government against Black people. Dr. Shakur wrote this from prison, where he was serving a 60 year sentence for his role in a Black Liberation Army (BLA) led robbery in 1981.
A paper by a team of Black prisoners who experienced behavior modification in prison. In this paper they argue that Black prisoners being given behavior modification is a form of genocide against Black people. The paper was presented for consideration by the Research Committee on International Law and Black Freedom Fighters in the United States.
A paper by Albert Nuh Washington (Nuh Abdul Qaiyum) arguing that America's foreign policy serves the larger function of the subjugation of non-white people in the United States. Nuh Abdul Qaiyum was sentenced to prison in 1975 for a 1971 Black Liberation Army (BLA) connected shooting of police officers in New York,
A paper by Yale Law School student Mary Dudziak representing the “current stage of my continuing research on the history of school segregation in Topeka Kansas.” She thanks the ACLU for research and travel funds. Handwritten notes from Lamson throughout the paper and attached sheets with handwritten notes from Lamson.
In this entry, Margaret Walker is writing from Minneapolis, Minnesota. She is reacting to the assassanation that day of Martin Luther King Jr., writing, “May God have mercy on us! What will happen next?” This page also reflects her doodling, which can be found across the entire collection of her journals.
Case Data and Exhibits for Brown III, a relitigation of Brown v. Topeka Board of Education (1954) that corrected resegregation issues caused by open enrollment school choice in 1992. A motion of substitution from the defense team requesting that 3 people be removed as parties from the case because they are no longer members of the school board.
Case Data and Exhibits for Brown III, a relitigation of Brown v. Topeka Board of Education (1954) that corrected resegregation issues caused by open enrollment school choice in 1992. A motion from the defense team requesting that the ten additional defendants listed in the motion be allowed to assist in answering plaintiff interrogatories.
Louis Nunez of the United States Commission on Civil Rights issues a memo requesting commissioners of other federal agencies to take action on the Kansas Advisory Committee's statement. He requests that other commissioners write letters to the Department of Justice in favor of making the Topeka School District comply with desegregation orders.
Case Data and Exhibits for Brown III, a relitigation of Brown v. Topeka Board of Education (1954) that corrected resegregation issues caused by open enrollment school choice in 1992. In this memo, CLU Attorney Jon C. Dubin updates other Brown III Co-Counsel on the evidence discovery process and summarizes where the entire process currently stands.
A letter from the Panther 21 to New York State Supreme Court Justice John M. Murtagh. The Panther 21 was a group of Black Panthers who were on trial for alleged bombing attacks against three police stations in New York City in 1969. The letter is an indictment of the American justice system where the 21 Black Panthers find themselves on trial.
This memo references a new board that was formed called Mississippi Action For Progress (MAP) to replace the Child Development Group of Mississippi (CDGM) and take over Head Start operations in the state. The memo says that this decision was made without any input from CDGM or the people in the communities that Head Start serves.
A newspaper article from The Star Ledger about the 15 sequestered jurors in the Assata Shakur (JoAnne Chesimard) trial for the 1973 killing of a state trooper being given a media blackout after the seizure of three buildings in Washington, D.C. by the Hanafi Muslim sect to avoid possible prejudice against Shakur, a professed Muslim.
Case Data and Exhibits for Brown III, a relitigation of Brown v. Topeka Board of Education (1954) that corrected resegregation issues caused by open enrollment school choice in 1992. The map shows landmarks and points of interest, such as Washburn Municipal University; Central Park; the Topeka Country Club; and the Kansas National Guard base.
Case Data and Exhibits for Brown III, a relitigation of Brown v. Topeka Board of Education (1954) that corrected resegregation issues caused by open enrollment school choice in 1992. Document to the plaintiffs from the defense requesting answers to questions brought up by the plaintiff’s first set of interrogatories.
Case Data and Exhibits for Brown III, a relitigation of Brown v. Topeka Board of Education (1954) that corrected resegregation issues caused by open enrollment school choice in 1992. Document from the plaintiff attorneys to the defendants associated with the state of Kansas and the State Department of Education listing questions to be answered.
A list of questions about the history of the Black Panther Party written by an unknown author. The questions ask about the internal and external factors that led to their development. There are also questions referring to the success of the Party and doing things differently.
Case Data and Exhibits for Brown III, a relitigation of Brown v. Topeka Board of Education (1954) that corrected resegregation issues caused by open enrollment school choice in 1992. Third set of questions from the plaintiff attorneys to the defense attorneys seeking answers to 62 questions as part of the evidence discovery phase.
A newspaper article from The Star Ledger about evidence in the trial of Assata Shakur (JoAnne Chesimard) for the 1973 killing of a state trooper. Prosecution witnesses showed that blood found on the clothes of Assata Shakur (JoAnne Chesimard) matched the rare AB blood type of the slain state trooper.
Frankye Adams Johnson (Malika) writes this letter to her supporters outlining the criminal charges she is facing in 1980 stemming from a 1974 arrest. She is asking for any support that may be given to her during this time.
A letter to the participants of the New Afrikan Women's Organization (NAWO) conference on August 1-3 from the NAWO. The letter critiques the final paper that was produced by the conference as well as the conference as a whole, saying NAWO’s national posture was incomplete because of the limited number of women who participated in the conference.
A letter to the New Afrikan Women's Organization (NAWO) of New York from the women in the organization representing New Orleans, Louisiana, and Hazlehurst and Jackson in Mississippi. The letter is dated “May 28, 15 ADM” and signed by NAWO member Fulani Sunni-Ali. She calls for a three day retreat for organizational meetings.
A letter to New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller on behalf of Cornelius Butler and Lawrence Hayes, who were being tried for murder. The men were convicted to the death penalty on April 11, 1972, for their role in the hold-up of a convenience store and the murder of a police officer. Supporters contend that neither of the men fired the shots.
The letter includes a memo with Bob Longman of Central Surveys Inc.'s observations regarding R. Harrison Hickman’s critiques of the Topeka Survey about public schools. Hickman criticized the sampling method, the use of screening questions, and more. Longman calls his critiques “trivial and intended to attract attention away from the findings.”
A letter from the Staff Director of the United States Commission on Civil Rights (name redacted) to Assistant Attorney General, Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (name redacted) requesting correspondence on the Topeka desegregation case.
The Office of Civil Rights of the Region VII Department of Health, Education, and Welfare alerts the Topeka Public Schools Superintendent that their analysis shows that the KAW Area Vocational School did not violate the provisions of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act or Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. Names have been redacted.
The Director of the Office for Civil Rights in the United States Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (name redacted) writes to U.S. District Court Judge (name redacted) about their concern that the desegregation efforts made by the Topeka School System are not acceptable under the requirements of Title VI in the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
