The Greek Anti-Junta Struggle Collection measures thirteen and a half linear feet, and is divided into four series: History and Background (1949-1975), Subject Files (1957-1973), Legislative Materials (1956-1975), and Periodicals (1965-1975). Its general structure is based on the organizational scheme of the materials as given to the Labadie Collection by Mr. Pyrros. They were originally housed in ninety-two folders within four large boxes. These folders were numbered in the original order they arrived in the boxes and the materials in them were sorted. Because the folders were filled in large part with newspaper and magazine clippings, their contents were separated into two main groups: Greek Junta Collection clippings and other materials (such as correspondence, reports, essays, transcripts, memos, etc.). The decimal number on the folders (found in the History and Legislative Materials series) corresponds to the box each was originally in, and the order in which the folder was placed. Therefore, folder 2.5, for example, denotes that the folder originally was in the second box, and the fifth folder within that box. Both the boxes and most of the folders they contained were labeled on the front with notes on content and some personal comments, and the annotated portions of these folders have been retained and placed within the corresponding archival folders to preserve this information for use with the collection. Additional boxes were donated by Pyrros later on and make up the fifth series, boxes 9-14. They contain related materials but extended to 1977 and the aftermath of the Junta and the Cyprus Crisis, including Greek-U.S. relations, clippings from Greek and American publications on various aspects of Greek and Greek-American culture and politics, political scandals, etc. These folders have been added to the original collection; however, the earlier system of labeling the folders was not followed. The more recently donated materials included annotated folders just as the first one did, but since minimal processing was done, these folders were retained and simply placed in acid-free archival boxes. The box list for boxes 9-14 reflects these folders and the original annotations as written by the donor, which is why the folder headings may at times seem subjective. Some folders have the same or similar headings, and in order to distinguish them they have been labeled with a lower-case letter.
This is the collection of James G. Pyrros, a native of southeastern Michigan born of Greek descent. Educated in the fields of political science and law, he also served in the U.S. Army for some time in the American liaison detachment to the Greek Expeditionary Force. Active in politics beginning in 1949, he served as Assistant Attorney General in Michigan from 1955-1961. From 1961-1980, he worked as an administrative assistant to U.S. Congressional Representative Lucien Nedzi (D-Michigan) and lived in the Washington, D.C. area. Pyrros was vigorously involved in the anti-junta effort in the U.S. for the whole of the seven-year junta (1967-1974), and in his work had the opportunity to meet and work with most of the major American and Greek players in the effort. He served as a central contact in the U.S. Congress for anti-junta personalities both within the United States and internationally. Pyrros also had strong ties to the U.S. labor movement, and along with his wife, Betty (also of Greek descent), hosted many persons involved in the movement while they stayed in Washington, D.C.
