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

Alternative House, Oakland Alternative House, Oakland
Publisher: Alternative HouseFormat: ReportCollection: United Prisoners Union
Statement of purpose.
Report on August 26, 1988, Visit to Marianna FCI Women's Unit; Men's Unit tour, September 9, 1988 Report on August 26, 1988, Visit to Marianna FCI Women's Unit; Men's Unit tour, September 9, 1988
Year: 1988Format: ReportCollection: Marianna Penitentiary
Attorney's personal account of visit to FCI Marianna.
United States of America: The High Security Unit, Lexington Federal Prison, Kentucky United States of America: The High Security Unit, Lexington Federal Prison, Kentucky
Publisher: Amnesty InternationalDate: 8/1988Volume Number: AugustFormat: ReportCollection: Lexington Control Unit for Women
Reproduction of full summary and report.
Women's High Security Unit, Lexington KY Update Report to Amnesty International Women's High Security Unit, Lexington KY Update Report to Amnesty International
Authors: Jan Susler, Adjoa Aiyetoro, Elizabeth Fink, Mary K. O'Melveny, Margaret L. RatherDate: 11/22/1989Volume Number: 22-NovFormat: ReportCollection: Lexington Control Unit for Women
Reproduction of update to the August 1988 Amnesty International Report on Lexington Control Unit.
Grand Jury and FBI Activities Grand Jury and FBI Activities
Publisher: Non-CollaborationFormat: ReportCollection: Grand Jury
Report on nationwide Grand Juries and their activities. Reproduction.
Breaking the Chains: People of Color and the War on Drugs Conference Fact Sheets Breaking the Chains: People of Color and the War on Drugs Conference Fact Sheets
Publisher: Drug Policy AllianceYear: 2002Format: ReportCollection: Drugs in Prisons
Reproduction. Part of conference packet.
The Hidden War: A preliminary Report: Laws-Courts Prisons The Hidden War: A preliminary Report: Laws-Courts Prisons
Publisher: Prison Information CommitteeFormat: ReportCollection: Prison Conditions
Reveals the hidden war taking place in which the government controls people by the direct and indirect use of force and violence. Includes handwritten notes.
Women Deface the Presidio Army Base Women Deface the Presidio Army Base
Publisher: Women Against ImperialismFormat: ReportCollection: Women Against Imperialism
Account of the demonstration at Presidio Army Base in protest of US imperialism.
Social Control & The Politics of Prisons Social Control & The Politics of Prisons
Publisher: National Campaign to Stop Control Unit PrisonsFormat: ReportCollection: American Friends Service Committee
Details action of the NCSCUP, Control Unit Monitoring project, the NCSCUP Meeting in Wisconsin.
Buried Alive: Long-Term Isolation in California's Youth and Adult Prisons Buried Alive: Long-Term Isolation in California's Youth and Adult Prisons
Publisher: Laura Magnami, American Friends Service CommitteeYear: 2008Format: ReportCollection: American Friends Service Committee
Includes: History; Conditions; California; The Way to the SHU- Or Who is the "Worst of the Worst?"; Parole, Snitch, or Die?; The Mental Illness Factor; Taking it to the Courts; Youth and Isolation; Human Rights Protocol; Recommendations.