Search Help

How does this work?
There are many ways to search the collections of the Freedom Archives. Below is a brief guide that will help you conduct effective searches. Note, anytime you search for anything in the Freedom Archives, the first results that appear will be our digitized items. Information for items that have yet to be scanned or yet to be digitized can still be viewed, but only by clicking on the show link that will display the hidden (non-digitized) items. If you are interested in accessing these non-digitized materials, please email info@freedomarchives.org.
Exploring the Collections without the Search Bar
Under the heading Browse By Collection, you’ll notice most of the Freedom Archives’ major collections. These collections have an image as well as a short description of what you’ll find in that collection. Click on that image to instantly explore that specific collection.
Basic Searching
You can always type what you’re looking for into the search bar. Certain searches may generate hundreds of results, so sometimes it will help to use quotation marks to help narrow down your results. For instance, searching for the phrase Black Liberation will generate all of our holdings that contain the words Black and Liberation, while searching for “Black Liberation” (in quotation marks) will only generate our records that have those two words next to each other.
Advanced Searching
The Freedom Archives search site also understands Boolean search logic. Click on this link for a brief tutorial on how to use Boolean search logic. Our search function also understands “fuzzy searches.” Fuzzy searches utilize the (*) and will find matches even when users misspell words or enter in only partial words for the search. For example, searching for liber* will produce results for liberation/liberate/liberates/etc.
Keyword Searches
You’ll notice that under the heading KEYWORDS, there are a number of words, phrases or names that describe content. Sometimes these are also called “tags.” Clicking on these words is essentially the same as conducting a basic search.

Search Results

Maya Angelou-- Collage of music and poetry Maya Angelou-- Collage of music and poetry
Date: 2/16/1982Call Number: KP 100Format: CassetteProgram: Freedom is a Constant StruggleCollection: Black Arts
Four Maya Angelou poems from a benefit reading in 1972 for Angela Davis, interspersed with jazz and blues music for a radio program called “Freedom is a Constant Struggle”. Poems: Harlem Hopscotch, Time-Square Shoe-Shine Composition, Harriet Tubman (?) (by Margaret Walker), For My People (by Margaret Walker).
Out of the Mouth of Babes #2 Out of the Mouth of Babes #2
Date: 1/1/1994Call Number: KP 201Format: DATProducers: Kiilu NyashaProgram: Out of the Mouth of BabesCollection: Black Arts
Holiday Season children's programming with performances by children ranging from age 2 -17 years old. Holiday songs from the East Bay Center for the Performing Arts led by Martie Vandry. Some poems, essays, and stories on racism and sexism. Includes interviews with some of the children. Also has performances from "Vocal Motion" of the Oakland Youth Chorus, Gail Sandoval, Angela Castilla, Lonnie Houston, and Owen Davis.
My Life as Myself- Alice Walker My Life as Myself- Alice Walker
Date: 1/1/1995Call Number: KP 203Format: Cass A & BProducers: RykodiscCollection: Black Arts
In this intimate meeting, Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Alice Walker takes you into her private world and summons the powerful spirits and events that have shaped her life. Topics include: fighting oppression through creativity; reconnection to the natural world; the secret of joy; work as prayer; much more. With eight original poems
June Jordan Poetry reading June Jordan Poetry reading
Date: 11/1/1977Call Number: KP 050Format: Cass A & BCollection: Black Arts
June Jordan reads her poems about Black women's struggles, love, rape, and male authority. She dedicates one poem to Fannie Lou Hammer. The audience asks her questions about her work.