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David R. Byrd (1921-1987) was an African-American architect of churches, residential homes, offices, and schools in Washington, D.C. and Ann Arbor, Michigan. He served on the Board of Commissioners of Washtenaw County (1968-1972), and was an advocate for civil rights and affordable housing for the poor. This collection includes architectural drawings, reports, photographs, and personal and professional correspondence.

The David R. Byrd papers include correspondence, reports, drawings, plans, and photographs regarding the life of David Byrd, his career in architecture, and his civic activism. The papers contain material on churches and other projects Byrd designed in Ann Arbor and Washington D.C., documentation of his interest in city planning and zoning issues in Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County and his interest in the school system and the African-American community in Ann Arbor.

This record group pertains to the University of Michigan Department of Afroamerican and African Studies and to campus, regional, and national organizations devoted to political and civil rights causes from the 1960s to the 1990s. The collection includes print documents, photographs, and audio-visual material that document racial harassment incidents, political protests, scholarly conferences and symposia, MLK Day celebrations and black student life on the U-M campus. There are also materials about the civil rights movement of the 1960s and the anti-apartheid and divestment movements of the 1980s. Originally a Center, the unit was formally recognized as a department of the College of Literature, Science and the Arts in 2011.

The records of the Department of Afroamerican and African Studies (DAAS; formerly known as the Center for Afroamerican and African Studies, or CAAS) include correspondence, syllabi, clippings, publicity materials, photographs and audio and video recordings of campus speakers. The record group includes archival material that was originally collected and made available in DAAS's library relating to black activism and to organizations of interest to black students, faculty and staff, as well as DAAS's own organizational archives. Because these materials have been consulted and cited by researchers prior to their transfer to the Bentley in 2011, their original arrangement has been preserved so far as possible.

Paper and photographic records consist of three major series: Black student activism, 1969-2001 (5.5 linear feet), Blacks at U-M, 1969-2007 (4.5 linear feet) and Organizational archives of CAAS, 1962-2010 (17 linear feet) (formerly designated simply "Archives.") There is some overlap of subject matter. These categories reflect the organization of the materials imposed by CAAS librarians and archivists prior to transfer to the Bentley in 2011.

The following list identifies the greatest concentration of material relevant to some of the notable subjects in the collection:

1. The Black Action Movements (Boxes 1-2 and 55)
2. Incidents of on-campus harassment and responses (Boxes 1, 2, 4)
3. South Africa, apartheid, and divestment -- (Boxes 2, 3, 5)
4. Free South Africa Coordinating Committee (Box 3)
5. Washtenaw County Coalition Against Apartheid (Box 5)
6. United Coalition Against Racism and the Baker-Mandela Center (Boxes 1, 4, 5)
7. The Michigamua controversy (Box 3)
8. The Nelson Mandela Honorary Degree Petition (Boxes 3, 11)
9. Gulf War activism (Boxes 3, 4)

This record group also includes a large number of audio and video recordings of presentations, interviews, documentaries, and cultural performances from the 1970s to the 1990s. The recordings include several notable faculty members, visiting scholars, and activists, including Harold Cruse, Cornell West, Rita Dove, Jesse Jackson, Angela Davis, Marian Wright Edelman and Rosa Parks.

The audio-visual material in the collection is organized is organized in to six series by format: Audio recordings on cassettes, 1975-2001 (486 cassettes, 9 linear feet), U-Matic videotapes, 1971-1989 (91 videotapes, 9.1 linear ft.) VHS videotapes, 1971-2004 (131 videotapes, 7 linear feet), Open reel videotapes, 1971-1980 (12 videotapes, 1 linear feet), Reel-to-reel audiotape, 1971, 1980 and undated (4 audiotapes, 0.3 linear feet) and Mini DVDs, 1999-2000 and undated (24 Mini-DVDs, 0.2 linear feet).

Professor of Health Management and Policy at the University of Michigan School of Public Health; also active in the American Civil Liberties Union, Michigan League for Human Service, Corner Health Center, and other organizations promoting social justice issues. The collection consists of files relating to his activist interests and to his involvement with different committee memberships within and outside of the University of Michigan.

This collection reflects Eugene Feingold's interest in social justice issues and the many ways in which he served the community. It spans the period between 1950 and 2002, and has been divided in four series, Topical Files, Department of Medical Care Organization, University of Michigan Minority Concerns, Faculty against Institutional Racism (FAIR) and Ann Arbor Fair Housing Legislation.

Dean Emeritus of the School of Social Work, Professor Emeritus of Social Work, and Professor Emeritus of Health Behavior and Health Education. Dr. Harold R. Johnson was also one of the first Black Deans at the University of Michigan. Includes correspondence, reports, and topical files related to Johnson's academic and professional career.

The Harold R. Johnson papers primarily document Johnson's academic and professional career and includes correspondence, reports, talks, and topical files.

Social and political activist whose main causes included access to high quality health care for marginalized ethnic and racial groups and the elderly, homelessness, hunger, job skills training, and Democratic political activism. Papers are comprised of materials documenting her professional and personal life after the passing of her husband, Roger Warren Barney, in 1978. Materials include meeting minutes, notes, correspondence, reports, awards, photographs, and family materials.

The Jane L. Barney papers are comprised of materials documenting her professional and personal life. The Professional Files include organization meeting minutes, correspondence, notes, flyers, manuals, press articles, and personnel files, as well as other administrative papers and reports for the organizations she worked to establish, develop, and run. Also found here are speeches, papers relevant to her work with churches, marginalized ethnic and racial groups, and gerontology.

Jane L. Barney's personal papers largely include correspondence with friends, co-workers, politicians, and family, as well as notebooks, diplomas, hospital and assisted living documentation, and photographs.

Ann Arbor, Michigan, African American church. Files relating to church administration and activities; financial record books and reports; minutes of church officers; church anniversary booklets and other publications; and other subject files.

The records of the New Hope Baptist Church are arranged alphabetically by topic. Although limited in quantity, they are a source of much information on the life of the church.

The Church Anniversary Booklets and Pastoral Anniversaries publications contain histories and information on church activities, especially those of the many church auxiliaries. The incomplete run of the church newsletter Whispering Pines, is a source of information on church events and social gatherings, denominational news, and sometimes includes messages from the pastor and biographical sketches of individual members. The Building Dedication folder contains two programs from the 1974 dedication. The Correspondence file primarily consists of routine outgoing letters of greeting, letters of recommendation and invitations from Lightfoot. The Minutes files are from meetings of church officers and the male choir, and include minutes from the organizational meeting of the church on December 12, 1965. The minutes are useful for tracing the early efforts of members to raise funds for a permanent home for the church and to increase membership. Although incomplete, information from the Financial Reports files can be used to study changes over time in income and expenses of the church. The Membership Information file consists of orientation materials given to new members of the church. The materials are useful for understanding the theological and organizational underpinnings of New Hope. The Officers Profiles folder provides interesting demographic information on the educational and employment background of church leaders.

The Richard Ross collections brings together correspondence, research, reports, and proposals for the Junior Year in Africa/Africa Exchange Program and Master's programs in Black History, originated by Dr. Richard H. Ross, Sr. during his time as a student at the University of Michigan, and as Director of Research for the Center of Afroamerican and African Studies (CAAS), recognized as the Department of Afroamerican and African Studies (DAAS) in 2011. These materials document some of the early history of CAAS, including efforts to keep the center running when faced with termination in 1973.

The Richard Ross collection is a chronological set of papers documenting projects Dr. Richard H. Ross, Sr. worked on during his time at the University of Michigan, both as a student and as the Director for Research at the Center for Afroamerican and African Studies, now known as the Department for Afroamerican and African Studies. The bulk of the collection materials document Ross' efforts toward a Junior Year in Africa/Africa Exchange Program (JYA/AEP) including research; a report on paternalism and racism in the University of Michigan Financial Aid Office toward Black students; financial proposals; and correspondence. The JYA/AEP materials also include the mission statement, founding documents, and photographs of projects run by the African American and African Foundation on Science, Education, and Economics Development, Inc. (AAAFSEED). The rest of the materials document Master of Arts proposals, the Request for a Three-Year Evaluation for CAAS in 1973, and Ross' correspondence with CAAS and LSA regarding the donation of this collection.

Wayne Dabney is a photographer, video producer and political activist from Ann Arbor. A personal friend of writer and activist John Sinclair, Dabney was active in the Rainbow People's Party. He resided at the Argus House commune in Ann Arbor in the early 1970s. In the 1980s, he produced and hosted "Wayne's Cultural Clinic," a public access television program that consisted of musical performances and interviews with people involved in arts and politics, which aired on CATV in Ann Arbor. This collection contains episodes and related episode notes, as well as a pilot for a different program entitled "People and Places." It also contains select issues of The Communicator, the newspaper of UAW Local 735, of which Dabney was the editor in the mid-1990s.

The bulk of this collection consists of 22 U-matic videorecordings of episodes of “Wayne’s Cultural Clinic,” (1981-1984) a public access television program that aired on Ann Arbor Community Access Television (CATV), along with notes associating various interviewees with specific episodes. A master tape is also included for the pilot of a different program produced by Wayne Dabney entitled “People and Places.” Episodes range from 30 to 60 minutes in length.

The collection also contains selected issues of The Communicator, a publication of United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 735, of which Dabney served as editor in the mid-1990s. The issues are dated primarily between 1994 and 1996, with the exception of a single 2007 issue for which Dabney was not the editor. There is also a campaign flyer promoting Dabney for an office within his UAW chapter.

Willis C. Patterson, the first African American professor at the University of Michigan's School of Music, was an active faculty member from 1968 to 1999. He was a professor of voice and associate dean for academic affairs. Patterson directed the Men's Glee Club from 1969 and 1975 and spent summers as a faculty member at the National Music Camp at Interlochen, Michigan. While maintaining an active concert career and fulfilling teaching duties, Patterson organized a Black American Music Symposium and compiled several works on African American composers. Patterson played an active role in securing funding and mentorship for students of color and disadvantaged students both at Michigan and in the Ann Arbor community. The collection includes some biographical material, but focuses mainly on his professional career, musical career, and collection of works by African American composers. It includes correspondence, research, photographs, clippings, publications, and topical files.

The Willis C. Patterson papers include some biographical material, but focuses mainly on his professional career, musical career, and collection of works by African American composers. The collection includes correspondence, publications and research material, photographic material, posters, student records, clippings, and topical files.