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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.
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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.
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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.

Gender and Sexuality

This collection features materials from a number of sources focusing on struggles revolving around gender and sexuality. These struggles are not separate from larger struggles for liberation but specifically incorporate unique voices and perspectives.

Subcollections

  • Connexions
    Connexions
    Connexions is the collective product of feminists of diverse nationalities and political perspectives committed to contributing to an international women\'s movement.
  • Feminist and Lesbian Politics: Monographs-Periodicals-Articles
    Feminist and Lesbian Politics: Monographs-Periodicals-Articles
    This collection contains materials focusing on radical feminist and lesbian politics. While diverse in medium and subject matter, this collection contextualizes women’s liberation highlighting issues of class, race, sexuality and imperialism.
  • Materials shot and collected in the making of The Forest for the Trees
    Materials shot and collected in the making of The Forest for the Trees
    Raw materials from the documentary "The Forest for the Trees" which details the amazing story of the fight to clear Earth First! activist Judi Bari's name after her car was bombed and she was arrested as a terrorist.
  • Out of Control: Lesbian Committee to Support Women Prisoners
    Out of Control: Lesbian Committee to Support Women Prisoners
    Out of Control (OOC) was a self-supporting committee formed in 1987 to organize resistance to the Lexington Control Unit for women.
  • Prisons - Women
    Prisons - Women
    This collection contains materials relating to the specific conditions, challenges and struggles facing women in prison. Topics are varied but materials include conference papers, informational materials, legal perspectives and audio recordings.
  • Programs produced by Judy Gerber and Laurie Simms
    This collection contains grassroots radio programming produced by Judy Gerber and Laurie Simms. This programming primarily occurred during the 1980s and 1990s.
  • Sterilization
    Sterilization
    This collection contains materials focusing on the sterilization of women and efforts to resist this practice.
  • Violence Against Women
    Violence Against Women
    This collection contains materials focusing on violence against women. Specific topics covered include women who fight back against their abusers, rape, pornography, sexism and self-defense.
  • Women Against Imperialism
    Women Against Imperialism
    Women Against Imperialism was a grassroots, feminist, anti-imperialist solidarity organization formed in San Francisco in 1981. Women Against Imperialism’s work primarily consisted of direct action organizing and political education activities.

Documents

Report on Mexico, December 1994 Report on Mexico, December 1994
Date: 12/16/1994Call Number: JG/ 088BFormat: Cass BProducers: Judy GerberProgram: A Defiant HeartCollection: Programs produced by Judy Gerber and Laurie Simms
News Report on Mexico, December 1994. EZLN returns to militarized activity in Chiapas with the appointment of a new PRI governor to that state. To foster a closer examination of the recent Mexican elections, there is a reading from the November 'Latin American News Update' that exposes injustices and even electoral fraud in the PRI dominated elections. Reports have surfaced in 'Excelsior' that there were patterned anomalies in the election's voting records, representing a culture electoral impunity. Rural elections were significantly less clean than those in urban areas; in widespread cases, ballots were not marked, polls were not opened on time, and re-voting and violations of secret ballot were allowed. Reading of a December 10, 1994 article from 'Peace Net' by Herman Bellinghausen. This article reports the EZLN's remilitarization and notification of civilian areas for future war under Geneva Convention procedures. Bellinghausen notes mass population movements, town preparations, and a large army presence in Chiapas. U.S. Human Rights Watch condemns the U.S. and other Western powers for putting trade before human rights.
Martha Reese on Southern Mexico and Guatemala Martha Reese on Southern Mexico and Guatemala
Date: 10/1/1995Call Number: JG/ 092AFormat: Cass AProducers: Judy GerberProgram: A Defiant HeartCollection: Programs produced by Judy Gerber and Laurie Simms
Interview with Martha Reese, anthropology professor at Agnes Scott College in Georgia on her work in Southern Mexico and Central America. Reese describes her work in Guatemala with organizing women textile workers and describes the dangers that such women face. She notes that women have become increasingly bold despite attacks against them. Reese then describes the Mexican crisis of legitimacy in Chiapas, including popular protest movements and the militarization of the region. She fears an army takeover of the Mexican government with the breakdown and bankruptcy of the PRI. She describes the poor economic situation in Mexico and describes local coping methods. She very harshly criticizes the U.S. state department. Not an objective interview.