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.

Independent Collections

These collections were produced by independent journalists. Many of these recordings make up the bulk of the original collection of the Freedom Archives.

Subcollections

Documents

Free Student Union Rally: 7/29/65 Free Student Union Rally: 7/29/65
Date: 7/29/1965Call Number: CE 729Format: 1/4 3 3/4 ipsProducers: Colin EdwardsCollection: Colin Edwards Free Speech Movement
Rally related to the trial of students involved in FSM activity. Speakers include student senator-in-exile Nicholas Zvegintzov, UC San Diego professor Avrum Stroll on the role of a public university in a democratic society, Mario Savio announcing a court support rally and discussing the importance of self-education, David Kolodny of the Free Student Union introducing Professor Thomas Parkinson, who speaks on lessons of the past year, legal issues and handling the “long haul of responsibility.” A letter of solidarity is read from labor union leader Leonard Levy. Bettina Aptheker speaks on the political nature of the charges against students and about receiving a letter from the Senate Internal Security Subcommittee. Announcements from the Vietnam Day Committee.
Mario Savio- A Study in Charisma and FSM Court Comedies Mario Savio- A Study in Charisma and FSM Court Comedies
Call Number: CE 703Format: 1/4 7 1/2 ipsProducers: Colin EdwardsCollection: Colin Edwards Free Speech Movement
The first part of the tape is entitled Mario Savio a Study in Charisma and is the story of Mario Savio who rose from a normal student to the leader of the Free Speech Movement. This short documentary includes of number of excerpts from Mario’s speeches. He gives a chronology of the FSM, links it to larger struggles for civil rights, and argues that students are fully competent to challenge educational tyranny. Included is a speech in which Mario says goodbye to his leadership position in the FSM and the palpable dismay of the crowd. At the end of the program are selections of FSM supporters singing Happy Birthday to Mario as well as FSM parodies of the traditional songs “Comfort and Joy” and “Hallelujah: Glory of the Coming of the Cops.” The second part of the tape is entitled Court Comedies: A collection of humorous memories and scenes from recent trials of students at the University of California Berkeley. Following their arrests at the Sproul Hall sit-in, many students faced heavy fines and/or jail time as well as academic sanctions from the University. This segment details the cases of four specific students, recaps some of the humorous testimony and verbal exchanges during their university trials and discusses the students’ sentences. The tape concludes with Professor Thomas Parkinson reading a letter supporting the students to the committee trying the cases.
4/26/65 Rally Part 2: Formation of the Free Student Union 4/26/65 Rally Part 2: Formation of the Free Student Union
Date: 4/26/1965Call Number: CE 727Format: 1/4 3 3/4 ipsProducers: Colin EdwardsCollection: Colin Edwards Free Speech Movement
Campus rally held in support of the formation of the Free Student Union, a successor to the Free Speech Movement. Many brief speeches and announcements by a number of student organizers and some discussion of the purpose and nature of a student union and student strikes. Some discussion of Mario Savio's resignation from the FSM.
4/28/1965 Press Conference: Formation of the Free Student Union 4/28/1965 Press Conference: Formation of the Free Student Union
Date: 4/28/1965Call Number: CE 728Format: 1/4 3 3/4 ipsProducers: Colin EdwardsCollection: Colin Edwards Free Speech Movement
Post-rally press conference announcing the formation of the Free Student Union. Major organizers discuss the union’s intent to unite the student body around issues of the “form and nature of education,” specifically discussing advocating for a holistic education as opposed to job training, as well as advocating for due process in FSM-related disciplinary matters.
Civic Park rally: 7/29/65 (part 1 of 2) Civic Park rally: 7/29/65 (part 1 of 2)
Date: 7/29/1965Call Number: CE 730Format: 1/4 3 3/4 ipsProducers: Colin EdwardsCollection: Colin Edwards Free Speech Movement
Second rally held on 7/29/65, at Civic Park in Berkeley near the courthouse, in support of students facing trial. David Goines goes to jail at the beginning of the rally, and the crowd sings “Goodbye David.” Speakers discuss specific legal strategy, fundraising needs and earlier mistakes. There are also several speakers from the Vietnam Day Committee discussing the war and how the committee plans to learn from the FSM. Lou Smith of CORE speaks on themes of commitment and the connections between the FSM and civil rights. Allen Ginsberg chants and rings a bell. Bettina Aptheker calls attention to an FBI agent in the crowd who has been following her and declares that “we’re the fighting generation.” Mario Savio discusses his experiences in Santa Rita and the impacts of incarceration.
Civic Park rally: 7/29/65 (part 2 of 2) Civic Park rally: 7/29/65 (part 2 of 2)
Date: 7/29/1965Call Number: CE 731Format: 1/4 3 3/4 ipsProducers: Colin EdwardsCollection: Colin Edwards Free Speech Movement
Continuation of Mario Savio discussing legal issues at 7/29 Civic Park rally. Susan Stein discussing the arrest (“kidnapping”) of David Goines and stating that “bail is just a nice word for ransom.”