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

PAC Chairman  Nyati Pokela  interview (Pan Africanist Congress of South Africa) PAC Chairman Nyati Pokela interview (Pan Africanist Congress of South Africa)
Date: 11/13/1982Call Number: AFR 009AFormat: Cass AProgram: Songs of FreedomCollection: South Africa
Judy Jensen of the Material Aid Campaign for ZANU interviews the Chairman of South Africa’s PAC (Pan Africanist Congress). Nyati Pokela speaks about the history and purpose of the PAC and explains what Bantustans are and why they were created. He explains why the PAC and the ANC (African National Congress) deem it necessary to engage in armed struggle against the Apartheid government, and how the PAC’s leaders lead by example by taking risks for the cause. Pokelu details the role of women in the struggle and the conditions of the black population of South Africa, and explains the unequal development of different African countries toward independence. He talks about the similarities between the struggles in South Africa and the US, and calls for solidarity with the PAC and Africa’s cause.
Breakthrough Breakthrough
Publisher: Prarie Fire Organizing CommitteeYear: 1985Volume Number: Vol. 9-1 Spring-SummerFormat: PeriodicalCollection: Breakthrough
Editorial: Disturbing their Peace p. 2 - The Next Wave: Thoughts on Revolutionary Feminism p. 4 - Azania: the Fire This Time by New Afrikan People's Organization p. 15 - De Pie y en Guerra, interview with Puerto Rican POW Oscar Lopez Rivera p. 23 - Don Juan Antonio Corretjer 1908-1985 p. 25 - The New Right: with God on Their Side p. 35 - From the Clandestine Movement: Red Guerrilla Resistance Bombs NY Patrolmen's Benevolent Association p. 45 - Can't Kill the Spirit: Staements from Revolutionary Prisoners: New York 8 p. 47 - Ohio Five p. 48 - Susan Rosenberg and Tim Blunk p. 50 - Write to the Prisoners p. 51
One Azania, One Nation, One People! Speeches and Documents of the Pan-Africanist Congress One Azania, One Nation, One People! Speeches and Documents of the Pan-Africanist Congress
Publisher: P.A.C.Collection: South Africa
The P.A.C. Case (Mangaliso Sobukwe); The Manifesto of the P.A.C. (adopted in 1959); Twilight Time for Apartheid-Colonialism (Potlako K. Leballo); From Sharpeville to Soweto (David Maphumzana Sibeko); Tambos ANC Prefers Colonial and Racist Name to Azania (David Dube).