Symbionese Liberation Army (SLA)
The Symbionese Liberation Army (SLA) was a California leftist
revolutionary group active from 1973 through the mid 1970s. A primary goal of the organization was the
“gaining of freedom and self-determination and independence for all their
people and races.” The SLA utilized tactics of expropriation, direct action and
armed propaganda to stimulate public awareness and action around issues of
poverty, housing, racism, women’s rights, and prison issues. Despite undertaking
a number of controversial and sometimes polarizing actions, one of the foremost
successes of the SLA was forcing the Hearst family to give away millions of
dollars worth of food from Safeway grocery stores to impoverished communities
in the Bay Area.
Highlights of our collection include scanned copies of the
Dragon, a rare periodical produced by the Bay Area Research Collective in
support of the SLA; original SLA communiqués, statements and publications; and press
releases, flyers and statements from other Bay Area radical groups concerning
SLA actions and ideas. Additionally, we have hundreds of articles taken from
local Bay Area news sources, all pertaining to the SLA and the group’s
activities. Our collection of paper documents is supplemented by our media
holdings primarily derived from local recordings and programs. These include
memorial shows, audio from rallies and news programs and taped communiqués.
Subcollections
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The Dragon
Periodical in support of the SLA printed monthly by the Bay Area Research Collective.
Documents
BGF solidarity with SLA open letter
This communique is from the Black Guerrilla Family that calls for an end of sufferng and the oppression of the people. It outlines what oppression looks like, supports the SLA in their movement, and calls for action against oppression to be taken, but to be objective when taking action.
H.E.W. is an Enemy of Women
This communique by the Women's Brigade of the Weather Underground states that the actions taken by SLA to give food to the impoverished highlight the amount of people in poverty and in need. They argue that the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare denies women their needs and rights and their should be a revolution against the organization.
Patty Hearst communique
This communique was written by Patricia Hearst, Teko, Fahizah, and Cinque. Hearst announces her joining the Symbionese Liberation Army to fight for the freedom of oppressed people and her decision to take up the name Tania. Teko discusses the need for white men to join the revolution and to stop opressing. Fahizah gives background on their General Field Marshall Cinque. Finally, Cinque calls for people to take up arms in the revolution and talks about the Hearst operations.
Class Struggle vs. S.L..A. Terrorism: a Community Analysis
This article anaylzes the Symbionese Liberation Army from a communist perspective. It denounces the SLA and thinks that its form of terrorism is futile. The article suggests only a communist proletariat will bring about a revolution.
Communique from the United People's Liberation Army (Transcript)
This communique indicates that the Symbionese Liberation Army has joined with the Guerrilla Organizations to create the United People's Liberation Army in response to the killing of the six SLA members. Also, it commemorates those six slain SLA members and also honors Patricia Hearst.
Communique to all Media from the Organic Army of Revolution
This is a communique from the Organic Army of Revolution that appears to be a parody of communiques written by revolutionary groups of the 1960s and 1970s. The communique comments on Cinque of the Symbionese Liberation Army and gives directions to members concerning their next revolutionary move.
SLA Communique #1
This communique discusses the attacks on the Oakland Board of Education, Dr. Marcus Foster and Robert Blackburn.