From Jim Crow to Black Power
This guide is designed to show what kinds of materials are available at The University of Alabama Libraries Special Collections on topics related to African American history during the Jim Crow era, which starts with the end of Reconstruction in 1877 and ends in the 1960s, with the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1960, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the Fair Housing Act of 1968. This scope was considered broadly, so the guide presents a mix of items which reflect daily life, act as an information source, or chronicle attitudes about race and related topics.
This list is thorough but not exhaustive. Use these resources as a starting point for your own searching of Scout (for published materials) and ArchivesSpace (for archival/unpublished materials).
These lists include
- Both published and unpublished materials
- Books and editions of books only from the period, except in the case of oral histories, which are often done after the fact
- Items held by Special Collections, as the aim of the list is to guide users to our particular holdings
If you have any questions about this guide or the materials described in it, contact Special Collections reference staff (archives@ua.edu).
Sections
Everyday Life
Works that help contextualize what life was like for African Americans in the South and elsewhere.
Arts & Culture
Works that illustrate African American cultural trends, including sections on music, food, and literature.
Ideas About Race
Ideas and discourse about race and race relations. Includes the writings and philosophies of prominent African American leaders, thinkers, and scholars; materials focusing on the Civil Rights Movement, including groups like the NAACP and Southern Christian Leadership Council (SCLC); and materials from the forces the countered it, like the Ku Klux Klan and the Citizens Councils.
Information Sources
Materials which provide information on the Civil Rights Movement or African American life, including newspapers and clippings, government reports (especially from the United States Commission on Civil Rights), and the papers of members of congress active during this time.
Civil Rights Topics
Special topics within the larger umbrella of Civil Rights, including segregation, civil rights activities (marches, sit-ins, etc.), lynching and mob violence, voting and politics, and labor. Some of these topics may also be discussed in other sections above, particularly in the section on Information Sources.
At the University of Alabama
Coverage of the June 1963 “Stand in the Schoolhouse Door” and integration of UA by James Hood and Vivian Malone, as well as Autherine Lucy’s earlier attempt in 1956.