Housing

ACLU Oakland County Branch Records

abarker — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 10:40:43 -0400

The Oakland County Branch of the American Civil Liberties Union was formed in 1979, with James Lafferty serving as the first elected president. Petitioned by the Metropolitan Detroit Branch of the ACLU, the branch was formed to address issues such as Oakland County jail conditions, lie detector use, senior housing rights, and attempts to reinstate the death penalty.

Contents of the collection include materials relating to the Baldwin Site Proposal for Senior Housing in the City of Birmingham, MI, and the related activities of PRIDE (People Rallying in Defense of Equality); the office files of branch president James Lafferty, and documentation of the war resistance and anti-draft activities of CARD (Committee Against Registration and Draft) and CCOO (Central Committee for Conscientious Objectors).

Chris and Marti Alston Papers

abarker — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 14:50:29 -0400

Chris Alston worked as an organizer for the the CIO during the 1930's, founding what became the Tobacco Stemmers' and Laborers' Industrial Union (CIO) in Richmond, Virginia. He served as president of United Auto Workers Local 429 from 1958 to 1962. Mr. Alston worked as a community organizer in Detroit, founding what became the Forest Park Citizens' District Council. Marti Alston served as an officer of the Forest Park Citizens' District Council and founded with her husband Chris the Michigan Committee for a Democratic Haiti. The bulk of the Chris and Marti Alston Collection documents their experiences as community activists in the redevelopment of the Forest Park urban renewal area. To a lesser extent, the collection documents the Alstons' involvement in various social justice and human right causes.

Jerome P. Cavanagh Papers

drice — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 23:06:22 -0400

The papers of Mr. Cavanagh, mayor of Detroit from 1962 to 1970. They include correspondence, reports, studies, speeches, minutes, and other materials of the mayor's office and commissions and departments of the city. Efforts, both local and national, in improving economic and racial conditions in Detroit are recorded in the collection. Subjects of interest include 1967 Detroit riot; Detroit Police Dept.; urban redevelopment programs; Detroit and Michigan politics; New Detroit, Inc.; poverty programs; housing; civil disorders and police problems; and all aspects of the urban complex. Smaller groups within the collection are the files of James L. Trainor, Fred Romanoff, Richard Strichartz, Jack Casey, and Sandra McClure, all members of the mayor's staff. Correspondents are government officials on every level: U .S. presidents, vice presidents, senators, congressmen, state officials, mayors of other cities, and other prominent public figures.

Jerome P. Cavanagh Photographs and Other Material

drice — Fri, 08 Sep 2017 11:06:29 -0400

The Jerome P. Cavanagh Photographs and Other Material consists of numerous photographs, the majority of which were taken during his time in office. These photographs cover events such as the 1968 Olympic Bid, visits from Lyndon B. Johnson, aftermath of the 1967 unrest, and Mayor Cavanagh with various prominent Detroit business people, union members, and politicians. Also included in the collection is memorabilia from his 1966 Senate campaign, 1968 Olympic information, and other various memorabilia during his time in office.

CIO Office of the Secretary-Treasurer Records

drice — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 09:58:06 -0400

Part 1 contains James B. Carey records, secretary-treasurer of the CIO from 1938 to 1955. Mr. Carey served as chairman of the CIO Civil Rights Committee and secretary-treasurer of the Philip Murray Memorial Foundation. He was the CIO representative to many international conferences, held a number of advisory positions with U.S. government agencies, and was on the executive boards of many private organizations. The topics cover a wide range of CIO activities. Among these are attempts to reunite the AFL and the CIO from 1937 to 1942 and again in 1955; Harry Bridges; communism in the labor movement; financial affairs of the CIO; International Confederation of Free Trade Unions and World Federation of Trade Unions; disputes within electrical workers' unions; CIO and Latin America; labor in World War II; anti-communism, and political action. Correspondents include nearly every major labor figure for the period.

Part 2 contains George L.P. Weaver records. In addition to serving as assistant secretary-treasurer of the CIO, he also held at various times the positions of assistant to the president of the United Transportation Service Employees Union; director of the ClO's Civil Rights Committee; assistant to the chairman of the National Security Resources Board; and member of the Committee to Reorganize the Reconstruction Finance Corporation. Mr. Weaver also played leading roles in the senatorial and presidential campaigns of Stuart Syrnington. In addition to labor topics, the Weaver papers cover Americans for Democratic Action; civil rights; Atlantic Conference of 1959; tin missions to Bolivia and southeast Asia (1951-52); housing; defense; manpower; McCarran-Walter Immigration Bill; NAACP; and the Taft-Hartley Act.

Part 3 contains records from the office of James Carey. In addition to material relating to his tenure as Secretary-Treasurer, there are some records relating to his role in the IUE. Topics covered include: UE; anti-Communism; expulsion of left-led unions from CIO; and HUAC.

Detroit Commission on Community Relations (DCCR) / Human Rights Department Photographs and Other Material

drice — Thu, 19 Jan 2017 16:35:46 -0500

The Commission on Community Relations evolved from the City of Detroit Mayor's Interracial Committee in 1953 and was renamed in 1974 as the Human Rights Department. All three iterations served a common purpose: to make recommendations to improve governmental services affecting racial relations, and to promote understanding between the races.

Collection consists of photographs documenting its efforts to overcome racial discrimination and improve race relations in the Detroit metropolitan area and ephemera related to the “March to Freedom” civil rights demonstration held in Detroit on June 23, 1963.

Detroit Renaissance Records

drice — Mon, 02 Jun 2014 10:28:41 -0400

The City of Detroit had difficulty rebuilding after the riots of 1967, as its population dwindled,
along with available capital and a supply of suitable housing, which suffered from neglect and abandonment. The Detroit Renaissance, a non-profit organization of business and community leaders, was formed in 1970 by the chief executives of the region's most influential employers to focus on the re-development of Detroit. Promoting urban renewal, this Southeast Michigan business roundtable created a series of programs helping to support virtually every major development project in Detroit, playing a major role in coordinating their funding. During the 2000's, the organization evolved and expanded its focus on regional issues while continuing its support for Detroit's redevelopment. In 2009 the roundtable was united with others across Michigan to form the group, Business Leaders for Michigan.

This collection predominantly contains newspaper clippings on projects and topics related to urban renewal, riverfront development, and living in Detroit during the years of 1974-1993. The rest of the collection is made up of organizational records and materials given to executive members of Detroit Renaissance from 1970-2002. Record types from this section include formal reports, promotional brochures, meeting minutes from various committees within Detroit Renaissance, and budgetary materials. Topics covered include development within Detroit, a proposed riverfront sports arena, and discussions on how to stabilize the city financially. A portion of Detroit Renaissance projects contained in this collection are: Detroit Strategic Plan, Harmonie Park, Renaissance Center, Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts, Detroit PeopleMover, and the Cobo Hall Expansion.

George C. Edwards, Jr. Papers, Parts 1-4

drice — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 10:39:40 -0400

George Edwards, Jr., son of George Clifton Edwards, attended Harvard University where he became involved with the Student League for Industrial Democracy. After coming to Detroit in 1936, he became a UAW organizer with Walter Reuther, was appointed director of the Detroit Housing Commission, and served on the Detroit Common Council. After serving in WWII, he went into private practice, followed by judgeships in the Wayne County court system. In 1956, Edwards was appointed to the Michigan State Supreme Court. In 1962 he was invited by Mayor Jerome Cavanagh to the post of Police Commissioner of Detroit where he focused his attention on organized crime and discrimination. After serving two years he was nominated to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals by President John F. Kennedy, and eventually served as a Chief Judge. He retired in 1991 and passed away in 1995.

Parts I-III of his papers reflects his early high school and college days, including correspondence with his father and material from his involvement in several student groups. Edward, Jr.'s various judicial campaigns, particularly his Michigan Supreme Court appointment, as well as his directorship of the Detroit Housing Commission are documented. Personal papers, including wartime correspondence with his wife, are included, as are newspaper clippings dealing with a variety of topics relevant to Detroit politics and events.

Part IV of Edwards, Jr.'s contains personal and career related correspondence from his service in the military through the 1980’s, with much focus on his nomination and confirmation to the Sixth Circuit Court. Included are many speeches and writings, his activities with professional organizations, a photocopy of his manuscript of the biography of his father, Pioneers at Law, and memorial tributes and letters of condolence to his family.

Mary Fox Herling Papers

drice — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 11:42:35 -0500

The wife of John Herling, Mary Fox Herling was a member of the Socialist Party. She worked for the League for Industrial Democracy, the War Labor Board, the Washington Newspaper Guild, and the Group Housing Cooperative which built the Bannockburn Community in Maryland.

Her papers are mostly personal correspondence, but also reflect her professional affiliations.

Damon J. Keith Papers

drice — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 14:20:02 -0400

Judge Damon Keith served in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, and in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Judge Keith delivered several landmark rulings in civil rights and civil liberties cases and played an active role in various civic, cultural and educational associations, including the Detroit YMCA, the United Negro College Fund, and the Detroit National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). He is the recipient of the NAACP’s Springarn Medal, the American Bar Association’s Thurgood Marshall Award, the Edward J. Devitt Award for Distinguished Service to Justice, and over thirty honorary degrees. Judge Keith’s papers document important milestones in his career, his precedent-setting judicial decisions, his role in ensuring equal justice for all Americans, and the many honors and awards bestowed upon him for his dedication to civil rights and to the City of Detroit.

Rose Kleinman: Greater Detroit Fair Housing Records

abarker — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:56:13 -0400

Housing reform activist, Rose Kleinman, served as head of the Fair Housing Listing Service, a committee of Greater Detroit Fair Housing, Inc, and helped to establish the Michigan State Housing Development Authority. Ms. Kleinman’s papers document her work with Greater Detroit Fair Housing, Inc. and reflect her interest in civil rights and low-income housing advocacy.

Arthur F. Lederle Papers

drice — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 16:40:37 -0500

Arthur Lederle taught in Detroit Public Schools before entering a legal career, culminating in his tenure as Judge of the Federal District Court for Eastern Michigan. He continued to be involved with education throughout his career. His papers reflect his position in Democratic Party affairs, his interest in court administration and civil procedure, the major case over which he presided and his educational activities.

Alan W. Mather Papers

drice — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 16:23:03 -0500

Alan Mather was an architect in New York, Detroit, and Chicago, working for various well-known firms. His papers reflect his architectural career and his interest and activity involving unionization of architectural employees.

Alex Pilch Papers

abarker — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 10:14:57 -0400

Legislator Alex Pilch served in the Michigan House of Representatives. During his term in office, Representative Pilch worked as an advocate of Parochiaid and campaigned against cross-district busing and the liberalization of abortion laws. Representative Pilch’s papers relate to his legislative work, particularly concerning Parochiaid, open housing, busing and abortion.

Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG) Records

drice — Wed, 11 May 2011 15:43:34 -0400

SEMCOG grew out of primarily the Detroit Metropolitan Area Regional Planning Commission (DRPC) and the Supervisors Inter-County Committee (SICC) in an effort to consolidate regional planning agencies and avoid duplication of programs and services. SEMCOG has continued its predecessors' work of assisting local planning programs, collecting area planning data, and providing an infrastructure for procurement of federal aid.

Records in Part I document SEMCOG's predecessor, the DRPC, and its transition to and early operation of the Planning Division of SEMCOG, through the office files of Paul Reid, Executive Director at the time of transition. Contained therein are findings of various planning projects and studies conducted by the two entities.

Records in Part II relate primarily to the administration of SEMCOG and the environmental, transportation, and economic issues it dealt with.

Records in Part III related to SEMCOG's work in environment, transportation, and urban planning. Documented are the activities of executive directors John Amberger and Paul Tait, and the Executive and Advisory Council from SEMCOG's inception through 2003. The records of the Metropolitan Affairs Coalition (MAC) a private-sector sister organization to SEMCOG are also included.

Ruth Tenney Papers

abarker — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 16:07:42 -0400

Ruth Tenney was active in various citizens groups and Detroit area non-profits concerned with urban renewal, including the Citizens’ Governing Board of the Detroit Model Neighborhood Program, and the People’s Area Development Corporation (PADCO). Ms. Tenney’s papers reflect her activities with these organizations.

UAW Fair Practices and Anti-Discrimination Department Records

drice — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 22:45:49 -0500

Subjects include: African-American workers; anti-Semitism; civil rights; community action programs; CIO state councils; race relations; Democratic Party; Detroit Revolutionary Union Movements; employment discrimination; Sunnyhills Housing Cooperative; Ku Klux Klan; Mexican Americans; gender discrimination; women's rights; United Steelworkers of America; sharecroppers; skilled trades; school desegregation

Note: Box 13 is unavailable.

UAW Local 142 Records

drice — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 11:51:33 -0400

United Auto Workers Local 142 serviced workers at the Kaiser-Frazer Corporation Plant in Ypsilanti, MI. Its records document local operations as well as services and benefits provided to members.

UAW President's Office: R.J. Thomas Papers

drice — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 16:17:49 -0500

Minutes of the UAW Executive Board (1940-47). correspondence, clippings, reports, and memorabilia collected by Mr. Thomas during his tenure as president of the UAW (1939-46). and vice-president (1937-39 and 1946-47). He was assistant to Philip Murray from 1947 to 1956, and to George Meany from 1956 to 1964. Subjects of interest in the collection are UAW factionalism, General Motors Strike (1945-46). Allis Chalmers Strike (1947), the UAW war effort, and the organization of the West Coast aircraft industry. Correspondents include George Addes, John Brophy, Richard Frankensteen, Homer Martin, George Meany, Wyndham Mortimer, Frank Murphy, Victor Reuther, Walter Reuther, August Scholle, Maurice Sugar. An oral history interview with Mr. Thomas is available.

UAW Public Relations Department: Clippings

drice — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 23:12:36 -0500

Subjects include: Chrysler and General Motors; Ford organizing; Local 600; FEW; strikes; Michigan politics; Communism; housing; Walter Reuther; steel industry; Taft-Hartley; Michigan labor; Detroit urban affairs; UMWA; HUAC; unemployment; Harry Truman

UAW Region 9 Records

drice — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:41:01 -0500

Subjects include: auto industry and auto workers in New Jersey, eastern Pennsylvania and upstate New York; Martin Gerber; equal employment opportunity; low-cost public housing; Bell Aircraft strike (1949); Kohler strike (1959); Liberal Party (N.Y.); New Jersey politics and government; civil rights movement; labor education; UAW CAP; women auto workers

UAW Research Library: Congressional Testimonies

drice — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 14:25:04 -0400

Since the formation of the United Auto Workers Union in 1935, union members have been actively involved in U.S. and international politics. Individual union members, from the highest ranking officer to the newest rank and file member have testified before Congress on issues ranging from trade and health care to housing and public welfare. Beginning in 1938 and ending in 2009 this collection documents the history of UAW members’ appearances before Congressional Committees. This collection consists of Congressional Testimonies, Congressional Reports, and House and Senate Bills that the UAW had influence over. The collection begins in 1938 as the union presented their case before the Senate Select Committee on Investigative Campaign Expenditures and ends in 2009 with the testimony of UAW President Ronald Gettlefinger before the Energy and Commerce Committee. This collection highlights the major contributions of the UAW to U.S. and international politics.

Urban Environment Conference (UEC) Records

drice — Mon, 02 Jun 2014 11:09:42 -0400

The Urban Environment Conference (UEC) grew out of an effort in 1971 by Michigan Senator Philip Hart to provide a forum for the discussion of problems and issues of joint concern to urban reform groups, environmentalists, and organized labor. Within a year, most of the participants decided to organize the group as a non-profit corporation with both advocacy and clearinghouse functions, including lobbying, education and publicity, fundraising, leadership training, technical assistance on program development, and coalition-building. While protecting on-the-job and community health has been the Conference’s priority issue, UEC also has a notable record on energy, mass transit, fair housing and full employment.

The Urban Environment Conference Collection consists of correspondence, reports, minutes,
clippings and publications related primarily to environmental/occupational health issues affecting minorities at home and in the workplace.

Edith Van Horn Papers

abarker — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 10:54:57 -0400

Labor and women’s rights activist Edith Van Horn began her career in the labor movement during World War II, when she left graduate school to join the war effort as an assembly line laborer for Goodyear Aircraft, where she joined United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 856. Ms. Horn later held posts as chief steward of Douglas Aircraft UAW Local 17, chief steward of Chrysler’s Dodge Main Local 3, where she was the first woman to serve on Local 3’s executive board, as a delegate to the UAW Constitutional Convention, and as the International Representative to the UAW’s Community Action Program. Ms. Horn was a founding member of the National Women’s Political Caucus (NWPC), the National Organization for Women (NOW) and the Coalition of Labor Union Women (CLUW), and was active in various Detroit area committees addressing violence against women and urban housing issues.

Ms. Horn’s papers largely document her work at Dodge Main and her extensive involvement in women’s issues. Of particular interest is the investigation into Ms. Horn’s alleged affiliation with the Communist Party, and her correspondence with Gloria Steinem.

Alfred H. Whittaker Papers

cwesterman — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 15:22:27 -0400

A founding member of the Detroit Metropolitan Rehabilitation Institute, Dr. Alfred Whittaker practiced medicine at several Detroit hospitals and was active in various metropolitan Detroit organizations, serving as a president of Future Detroit Inc. Citizens’ Housing and Planning Council and on the Wayne State University Board of Governors. Dr. Whittaker’s papers relate to his work with Future Detroit Inc.

Detroit's Black Bottom and Paradise Valley Neighborhoods

Public Relations Team — Fri, 04 May 2012 09:15:49 -0400

In the Winter 2012 semester, the Reuther Library worked with students in the Graduate Certificate in Archival Administration program at the Wayne State School of Library and Information Science to produce a series of student-written, guest blog posts.

Cathy MacDonald is a student in the Archival Administration Program at Wayne State University. She is currently interning at the Arab American National Museum’s Library and Resource Center.

Detroit’s Black Bottom and Paradise Valley neighborhoods provided both housing and entertainment for the city’s African American community from the 1920s through the 1940s. read more »

The 1943 Detroit Race Riot

jruss — Tue, 12 Jun 2012 15:07:36 -0400

On June 20, 1943, a fight broke out between African American and white Detroiters spending their Sunday on Belle Isle, the city’s large park in the middle of the Detroit River. Fighting spread to the mainland, and rumors crisscrossed the city, stoking racial tensions that had been running high and threatening to boil over into violence for months. Rioting spread, with little attempt from the police to stop it (in fact, much evidence points to many white police facilitating and even participating in violence against African Americans), and by the time President Franklin Roosevelt sent in federal troops on the evening of June 21, hundreds had been injured, and 34 people had died: 25 African American (17 of whom were shot by police), and 9 white. Of the arrests made later, 85% were African American. read more »

(30568) Segregations, Housing Discrimination, Undated

eclemens — Tue, 02 Jul 2013 09:13:52 -0400

Exterior view of a boarding house in the Queen Anne style. Painted on it’s exterior are two signs: “Rooms for rent” and “Rooms for Colored.”

(WSAV002727_001) Poletown, Neighborhood Scenes, 1981