This collection documents the work of the Honorable John H. Ruffin, Jr. as a civil rights attorney, judge, speaker, lecturer, and civic leader. Judge Ruffin was actively involved in numerous civil rights cases, notably the Acree vs. County Board of Education of Richmond County, Georgia, a lawsuit he filed to desegregate the schools in the county. Notably, Ruffin held the distinction of being the first African-American member of the Augusta Bar Association.
This collection documents the Atlanta Student Movement during the Civil Rights Era. It highlights student activism in the Atlanta University Consortium (AUC); Clark College, Morris Brown, Morehouse College, Atlanta University, and Spelman College. The collection includes newspaper and journal articles, flyers, reports, photographs, and correspondence by and about students from the AUC schools. Of note are copies of An Appeal for Human Rights written by student leaders, which set forth the student's grievances, rights, and aspirations as well as their dissatisfaction with the status quo conditions of segregation and discrimination and the slow pace at which inherent human and civil rights were being meted out to African Americans. The Appeal was published as a full-page ad in the March 9, 1960 editions of the Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta Journal, and Atlanta Daily World. It was subsequently published in the New York Times, providing national awareness of student activism in the civil rights struggle in Atlanta. The issuance of the Appeal was followed by sit-ins and pickets at specifically targeted businesses, government and transportation facilities in Atlanta and Fulton County, Georgia, and kneel-ins at churches. The participants in the Atlanta student movement organized commemorative reunions, 1990 and 2000 to re-examine the civil rights movement and discuss current efforts and projections for the future. Programs, minutes, correspondence, and news articles from the reunions are included in the collection.
The National Association of Mathematicians (NAM) is a professional organization founded in January 1969 by seventeen mathematicians from underrepresented groups in response to the racism and exclusion they faced from other mathematical organizations. With a stated commitment to inclusivity, diversity, and equity, NAM provides support to and recognition for the work of minority mathematicians while promoting progress and advancement in mathematics. The newsletters contain organizational news, promotions, event information, and articles. It also highlights mathematicians from underrepresented groups.
Pauline Alice Young, a distinguished educator, librarian, historian, and civil rights activist, was born in 1900. Her impactful career included teaching, lecturing, and extensive community involvement. Young's lifelong commitment to equality and civil rights advocacy left an indelible mark on Delaware, earning her numerous awards and a place in the Hall of Fame of Delaware Women in 1982.
This collection contains photographs of Atlanta University before its consolidation with Clark College, containing photographs dating from 1858 to 1995, with the bulk of the material falling between 1905 and 1968. The photographs consist of mostly students, alumni, faculty, administrative officers, campus events, and buildings of Atlanta University, however, there are photographs of people and places from all the Atlanta University Center schools.
Maurice Pennington was a photographer and cartoonist for The Atlanta Inquirer during the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s. A talented multimedia artist, Pennington documented the boycotts, sit-ins, and the arrests of students, commenting critically on the political and social climate in Atlanta through cartoons - skewering local politicians, admonishing Black leaders for their accommodationist views, and reminding his audience of the incompatibility of segregation and democracy.
