Blogs

When I started as the UAW Archivist, one unprocessed collection stood as the clear priority to open to the public: The UAW Local 600 Records. The largest and arguably most influential local in the historic UAW, numerous researchers clamored for the papers since the union deposited them in the archives.  read more »

The Reuther Library mourns the passing of Judge Damon Jerome Keith who made his transition April 28, 2019. A Detroit native and the grandson of enslaved Africans, Judge Keith lived during a number of pivotal moments in American and world history. Forced to endure and negotiate the confines of a world that too often worked against the interests and advancement of African Americans, he succeeded in life while making enduring contributions to its betterment.  read more »

Please note: The oral history course collections mentioned in this post have been consolidated into one collection: Wayne State University Oral History Methodology Course Oral Histories. Please refer to the finding aid here: https://archives.wayne.edu/repositories/2/resources/3381.

Over the course of the last few months I had the opportunity to work at the Reuther Library processing oral history collections. This was an incredible experience through which I was able to create tools to increase researchers' access to four relatively new collections: the Wayne State University Oral History Course Oral Histories. These four collections are a treasure for researchers studying a number of topics.  read more »

Fifty-five years ago, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees elected a new president who would dramatically change the trajectory of the union.

A founding member of the Wisconsin Service Employees Association in 1932, Arnold Zander took the lead in forming the national public employee union that would become AFSCME.  read more »