Ruthven (Rudy) Simons Papers

Accession Number: 
UP001998
Use restriction: 
Researchers must make an appointment with the AV Department to view boxes 18-21.
Extent: 
21.5 linear feet (17 SB, 7 MB)

Ruthven (Rudy) Simons is an activist for human rights. He was a vice president of the Cranbrook Peace Foundation, a board member of the Michigan Coalition for Human Rights, a founder of the Center for Peace and Conflict Studies at Wayne State University, and a member of delegations to Iraq, Iran, Haiti, China, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Israel, and Palestine. As a result of his passion for human rights, he was a recipient of the Center Peacemaker Award from the Center for Peace and Conflict Studies at Wayne State University, and of the Founder’s Award from the Michigan Coalition for Human Rights.

Simons has rallied for causes such as South African apartheid, ending U.S. intervention in Central America, Haiti, Iraq, and Iran, women’s rights, and civil rights. Moreover, he has participated in numerous demonstrations for peace with organizations including Witness for Peace, Michigan Interfaith Committee for Central American Human Rights, Michigan Committee for a Democratic Haiti, the Gray Panthers, the Poverty and Social Reform Institute, Business Executives Move for Vietnam Peace, and the U.S. China Peoples Friendship Association. Because of his wide breadth of interests, this collection spans a sizeable portion of Detroit peace and civil rights protests between the mid-1960s to 2012.

The Ruthven (Rudy) Simons Papers consists of newspaper articles, correspondence, rally information, and flyers from protests and events. There are also administrative documents and correspondence from numerous peace and civil rights community organizations, as well as notes and travel details from Simons’ delegation trips. Finally, this collection contains photographs from events including the Selma March and the Detroit Walk to Freedom, in addition to demonstrations and human rights-centered events.

Date: 
1963-2012, bulk 1975-1999
Attachment(click to download)
UP001998.pdfUP001998.pdf85.12 KB