Blogs

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, this Folklore Friday we focus on the legends, beliefs, and traditions of the Irish, as recorded by students for their individual field projects.  read more »

The Walter P. Reuther Library is happy to announce an addition to the NAACP Detroit Branch Records collection.

The Detroit Branch of the NAACP was established in 1912, making it one of the oldest branches in the country. Over the past century, this organization has worked to support and improve the lives of African Americans, particularly in areas of housing, employment, education, police-community relations, and voting.  read more »

On February 29, 1968, The Kerner Commission issued its report on the root causes of urban rebellion in the United States. Though the report was a top-down response to inequality, it was not the only response to growing unrest in American cities. That same year, Ralph Abernathy and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. planned the Poor People’s Campaign to address a lack of economic opportunity through grassroots organizing and demonstration.  read more »

Whether you celebrate the 14th of February or not, the day provides a good opportunity to take a closer look at some of the intimate stories contained within the Reuther's collections. While our purpose for collecting personal papers lies in their connections to organizations or social movements that help our understanding of the history of labor, metropolitan Detroit, or Wayne State University, it is often impossible to separate the private person from his/her public accomplishments. There is perhaps no better example of this than the Matilda Robbins Papers and the story of a deep love contained within.  read more »