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Founder and president of the Center for Military Readiness (CMR), opponent of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) from Livonia, Michigan. Collection includes anti-ERA materials authored and collected by Donnelly as National Media Chair of Phyllis Schlafly's Eagle Forum and founder of the Michigan Stop-ERA Committee, 1974-1983; also materials on the International Women's Year Conferences, 1977-1978; transcript, 1983, of testimony before a Subcommittee of the U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary; publications of Donnelly Media Associates of Livonia, Michigan, 1984; files relating to her interest in issues arising from the participation of women serving in the military, especially her work as executive director of the Center (formerly Coalition) for Military Readiness and her activities as a member of the Presidential Commission on the Assignment of Women in the Armed Forces; and photographs.

The Donnelly collection (1 linear foot) contains a wide variety of materials relating to her political activities. The collection has been arranged into two series: Topical Files and Women in the Military. The Topical Files series is arranged alphabetically by topic, and composed of clippings, correspondence, articles, press releases, newsletters, brochures, and schedules. There are four folders dealing with Donnelly's anti-ERA efforts (1973-1986). Also included here material concerning her endorsement of political candidates, including Ronald Reagan (1980, 1984), Jack Kemp (1986-1988), and Richard Chrysler (1986).

The Women in the Military series documents her work as executive director of the Center (formerly Coalition) for Military Readiness and her activities as a member of the Presidential Commission on the Assignment of Women in the Armed Forces.

Michigan Republican Party official, 1961-1969, assistant chairman of the national Republican Party, 1963-1964 and 1969-1970, candidate for, U.S. senate in 1964, and co-chair of ERAmerica, a national organization promoting the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. Papers consist of correspondence, reports, speeches, organizational records of ERAmerica, scrapbooks and photographs.

The Elly McMillan Peterson papers document the career of a Republican party activist and official, an advocate of the Equal Rights Amendment, and candidate for the U.S. Senate. The papers, comprised largely of correspondence, reports, and memoranda, are organized into seven series: Republican Party Activities, ERAmerican, Other Organizational Activities, Personal/Biographical, Speeches, Photographs, Scrapbooks/Clippings.

Wyandotte, Michigan, businesswoman, chairwoman of the President's Task Force on Women's Rights and Responsibilities during the Nixon Administration, later deputy assistant secretary of state for public affairs. Papers and photographs relating to her interest in women's rights, the equal rights amendment, Republican Party politics, the activities of International Women's Year, 1975, and the National Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs.

The Virginia R. Allan Papers have been grouped both according to types of documents covering her entire career (biographical, correspondence, writings and speeches, etc.). These are followed by three series of files pertaining to Allan's activities and organizational affiliations within specific time periods in her career. These chronological divisions (with some overlapping of dates) are 1950s-1972, 1971-1977, and 1977-1985. Although each of these chronological series documents Allan's life-long interest in women's issues, there are obvious highlights to each. The first chronological series - 1950s-1972, is especially solid with material relating to Allan's association with the Michigan and the National Federation of Business and Professional Women, and her service on the President's Task Force on Women's Rights and Responsibilities. The second of these series - 1971-1977 - obviously documents Allan's work at the State Department, her role with the International Women's Year and her participation in the Mexico City Conference in 1975. And the third chronological series - 1977-1985 - contain files pertaining to her participation in the second and third United Nations International Women's Conferences and to her faculty responsibilities at George Washington University.

The collection concludes with a small series -- Groups and Activities -- which contains both material dated after 1985 as well as earlier materials, a series of Personal materials, and a series of Audio-Visual materials that includes photographs, a videotape, and sound recordings.