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

A Double Sentence- AIDS in Prisons A Double Sentence- AIDS in Prisons
Call Number: JG/ 007Producers: Judy GerberCollection: Programs produced by Judy Gerber and Laurie Simms
"A Double Sentence- AIDS in Prisons" California male prisoners with AIDS are sent to insufficient facility in Vacaville and totally removed from the rest of the prison population
Real Dragon Real Dragon
Date: 8/15/1971Call Number: RD 003Producers: Lincoln BergmanProgram: Real Dragon (Midnight Flash)Collection: “The Real Dragon” a news magazine including music and poetry
Lincoln Bergman reads "Midnight Flash" with focus on the civil war in Northern Ireland in 1971. News reports on other events of the world in August of 1971 include Uruguay's attempt to remove their president, the United States basketball team's loss to the Cuban national team, South Africa's continued protests against apartheid by proposing a bill to turn the U.S. companies in South Africa over to Black Africans, the United States continued to stall an NLF Peace Proposal in VietNam, the six year anniversary of the 1965 Watts Riot. Reading of a poem written by Charlie Cobb formerly of SNCC. Bergman also reports the crumbling of the Saigon government, and rebellion by war veterans at an Air Force base that was trying to appeal for benefits from the U.S. government. Other coverage of 6 Pitt River Indians forced off their land by Pacific Gas & Electric, and Chicano march at Folsom Prison in protest of prison conditions.
Attica Rebellion: 30 years later Attica Rebellion: 30 years later
Publisher: Freedom ArchivesCollection: Freedom Archives Productions
30 Years After the Attica Rebellion: A 29-minute radio documentary about the origins of the modern anti-prison movement BC Master for portion of Prisons on Fire CD September, 2001 marks the 30th anniversary of the Attica Rebellion in New York. This massive prison takeover by hundreds of inmates and the callous repression and murders by the state of New York are part of a unique moment in US history. Who were the Attica Brothers? Why did they seize control of the prison? What makes Attica important to the anti-prison movement today? Featuring historical materials from the Freedom Archives. Voices include: Frank 'Big Black' Smith, Attica Brother and prison activist L.D. Barkley, Attica Brother killed during the re-taking of the prison Elizabeth Fink, attorney for the Attica Brothers Michael Deutsch, attorney for the Attica Brothers Historical recordings in Attica prison during the rebellion and the bloody retaking of the prison Knowing what happened in the early 1970s prison movement is essential for youth, communities of color and progressives to effectively confront today's unprecedented prison growth. We bring you this history through the voices of the people who were there - taking young people back to a time filled with lessons for today and tomorrow.