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Descriptive Summary

Repository: Harvard University Archives
Call No.: HUD 3125.2000
Creator: Association of African and Afro-American Students at Harvard and Radcliffe
Title: Records of the Association of African and Afro-American Students at Harvard and Radcliffe, 1963-1976
Quantity: 1.4 cubic feet (4 containers)
Abstract: The Association of African and Afro-American Students of Harvard and Radcliffe, also known as AFRO, was founded in the spring of 1963. The records document the history, activities, and interests of this group.
Note: This document last updated 2008 March 14.

Related Material

• See also Records of the Harvard Black Students Association, (Harvard University Archives call number: HUD 3222.5000) and records of other student groups in the Harvard University Archives.
• See also Records of the Harvard-Radcliffe Afro-American Cultural Center (Harvard University Archives call number: HUD 3125)
• Papers of Nathan I. Huggins, 1927-1990 (Harvard University Archives call number: HUGFP 91.xx)
• Search HOLLIS (Harvard's online library system) for works by and about the Association of African and Afro-American Students at Harvard and Radcliffe.

History of the Association

The Association of African and Afro-American Students of Harvard and Radcliffe, also known as AFRO, was founded in the spring of 1963 and officially recognized as an undergraduate student organization that December. The student group identified itself as Pan-Africanist and automatically granted membership to any black student at Harvard. The group's activities were both social and political; the emphasis changed from year to year. By 1977, due to a lack of funding and student support, the group was no longer active and had been replaced by the Harvard-Radcliffe Black Students Association.

The Association of African and Afro-American Students at Harvard and Radcliffe also used the acronym AAAAS and the name Harvard-Radcliffe Association of African and Afro-American Students.

Scope of the Records

The records document the history, activities, and interests of this group. In addition to documenting the Association itself, these records document the relationships between Afro-American groups at Harvard and beyond in the 1960s and 1970s. Many but not all of these groups were student organizations.

Documents include newsclippings, flyers and mailings, collected articles, correspondence, meeting agendas and notes, and subject files relating to student activism, recruitment, and affirmative action at Harvard and elsewhere.

Categories of Records

• General information about the Association
• Current affairs and interest files
• Administrative records

Separated Material

The records were received by the Harvard University Archives with the papers of Professor Nathan Huggins, W.E.B. Dubois Professor of History and Afro-American Studies and Director of the W.E.B. Dubois Institute for Afro-American Research at Harvard from 1980 to 1989. Presumably, these records were acquired by Huggins in his role as an advisor to the Association.

Series Descriptions and Folder Lists

• Series: General information, 1963-1975 (9 folders)
  Scope and Content: This series contains news clippings and flyers documenting the organization, its history, and the activities it sponsored, including African Freedom Fighters' Day and Africa Fast Day. The series also contains a brief typescript history of the organization.
  • A brief history of Afro: a history of struggle, [ca. 1973] (4 p. ; typewritten) Box 1
    Description: Narrative chronology of the Association from fall 1964 through spring 1973. Author unidentified.
  • News clippings, 1963-1964 Box 1
  • News clippings, 1967 Box 1
  • Flyers, 1969-1970 Box 1
    Includes flyers about African Freedom Fighters' Day, November 11, 1970
  • Flyers, 1972 Box 1
  • News clippings and flyers, 1973-1975 (3 folders) Box 1
    Includes flyers about Africa Fast Day, November 29, 1973
  • Flyers, undated Box 1

• Series: Current affairs and interest files, 1963-1976 (69 folders)
  Scope and Content: These files reflect the interests of the Association and their intersection with the interests of other Afro-American groups at Harvard and elsewhere. The files contain newsclippings about local and national events, organizations, and issues. They also contain flyers, mailings, articles, newsletters, and newspapers that were presumably collected by the Association. For correspondence with other organizations, see the administrative files below.
  • News clippings, 1963-1976 (8 folders)
    Scope and Content: The news clippings in the current affairs and interest files document events and issues at Harvard and elsewhere, including Harvard's Afro-American Studies Department, recruitment, admissions, affirmative action, and civil rights. The clippings cover specific issues with which the Association was involved or in which it was interested, including student protest again Harvard's investments in the Gulf Oil Corporation in April 1972, the campaign to support Dining Services staff member Sherman Holcombe, and the proposals of the DuBois Institute Student Coalition for the W.E.B. DuBois Institute for Afro-American Research.
    • News clippings, 1963-1964 Box 1
    • News clippings, 1967 Box 1
    • News clippings, 1972-1976 (6 folders) Box 1
  • Collected flyers and mailings, 1966-1967, 1970-1976 and undated (39 folders)
    Scope and Content: The flyers and mailings originate from groups at Harvard and elsewhere that shared the Association's interests. Many but not all of the groups were student organizations.
    Arrangement: The archivist arranged the flyers and mailings alphabetically by the name of the organization sponsoring an event or the name of the event. Items for which this was not possible are organized chronologically and filed at the end.
    • Harvard Advocate, 1974 Box 1
    • AFRICARE, 1973 Box 1
    • Harvard-Radcliffe Afro-American Cultural Center, 1973-1974 Box 1
    • Afro-American Studies Department, Harvard University, February 1975 Box 1
    • The Association for African-American Studies, Inc., August 1974 Box 1
    • Association of Black Collegians, November 1974 Box 1
    • Association of Black Radcliffe Women, 1974-1976 Box 1
    • Black and Crimson, undated Box 1
    • Black history calendar, 1974 Box 1
    • The Black History Collective, February 1974 Box 1
    • Black Student Forum, Boston College, January-February 1975 Box 1
    • Black Students Psychological Association, Brown University chapter, March 1974 Box 1
    • Harvard Committee Against Racism, [c. 1973-1974] Box 1
    • Committee to Fight for the Right to an Education, [c. 1972-1974] Box 1
    • Educational Resources Group, Harvard University, October 1975 Box 1
    • Forum on Genetics, Race and IQ, undated Box 1
    • Fred Hampton Contingent [of the December Fourteenth National March against Racism, 1974] Box 1
    • Freedom House, Inc., July 1974 Box 1
    • Harvard Black Law Students Association, [c. 1973] Box 1
    • Harvard Law School Forum, 1973-1974 Box 1
    • Indian weekend conference at Harvard, February 1975 Box 1
      Scope and Content: Information on a conference sponsored by the undergraduate organization American Indians at Harvard.
    • Museum of Afro American History, [c. 1974] Box 2
    • The Museum of the National Center of Afro-American Artists, December 1974 Box 2
    • National Commission on Law Enforcement and Social Justice, sponsored by the United States Churches of Scientology, December 1974 Box 2
    • Natural Resources Unlimited, November 1973 Box 2
    • North House History and Society Supper Lecture Series, March 1976 Box 2
    • Progressive Labor Party, May 1975 Box 2
    • Revolutionary Student Brigade, [c. 1973] Box 2
    • Organization for the Solidarity of Third World Students, c. 1974-1975 Box 2
    • The Student Committee for the December Fourteenth National March against Racism, November-December 1974 Box 2
    • Official statements on the student occupation of Massachusetts Hall, April 1972 Box 2
      Scope and Content: Contains official statments by the president of Harvard University
    • Student Organization for Black Unity, Greensboro, North Carolina, 1970 Box 2
    • Third World Cultural Center, 1974 Box 2
    • Third World Law Students of Antioch School of Law 1975 Box 2
    • Collected flyers and mailings, 1966-1967 Box 2
    • Collected flyers and mailings, 1971 Box 2
    • Collected flyers and mailings, 1974-1975 (2 folders) Box 2
    • Collected flyers and mailings, undated Box 2
  • Collected articles, newsletters, and newspapers, 1969-1975 and undated (22 folders)
    Arrangement: The archivist arranged this subseries chronologically.
    • Articles by black students in Harvard yearbook 333, 1969 Box 2
      Contents:

      • The end's beginning: a black sense by Harlon L. Dalton
      • Black Harvard: texture and temperament by Alex L. Jackson IV
      • A feminine hell by Muriel Morisey
      • Travels with Charlie: In search of Afro-America by Herbert Nickens
      • Part of a longer story by Godfred Pehuer Otuteye
      • You can take it with you by Wesley E. Profit
      • The white problem by Gregory B. Millard
      • No more tea anymore by Jeffrey P. Howard
    • Black power and the American University by W. Arthur Lewis, [1969] (5 p.) Box 2
    • Black student organizations on predominately white campuses: analysis by a 1970 graduate by Charles S. Dawson, in University: Princeton quarterly, Winter 1970-1971 (7 p.) Box
    • Repression in Southern Africa: an indictment of Harvard University prepared by The Pan-African Liberation Committee, September 1971 Box 2
    • Racism, intelligence, and the working class, a Progressive Labor Party pamphlet, c. 1972 Box 2
    • Student struggle at Southern University: background notes to political murder, December 1972 (23 p.) Box 2
    • Brothers and sisters: Hair ain't where it's at, by Carl T. Rowan, in the Kappa Alpha Psi Journal, 1973 (1 leaf) Box 2
    • The effect of teacher perception of personality factors on the cognitive and affective learning of black students by Marvin B. Scott, 1973 Box 2
    • The student movement at Southern University by Tim Thomas, 1973 (14 p.) Box 2
    • Making it and unmaking it: the black experience at Harvard by Martin Kilson, September 1973 Box 2
    • Investor responsiblity: a working paper by the Investor Responsiblity Research Center, Inc., October 8, 1973 (33 p.) Box 2
    • Committee for a Free Mozambique, cfm news and notes, November 1973 Box 2
    • Encore: the monthly news magazine, December 1973 Box 2
    • Blacks at Harvard: reflections, 1974 Box 2
      Scope and Content: Remarks prepared by Professor Ewart Guinier, Chairman of Harvard University's Afro-American Studies Department, for the 59th annual conference of the Association for the Study of Afro-American Life and History, October 25, 1974.
    • DeFunis v. Odegaard: an invitation to look back by Walter J. Leonard, 1974 (20 p.) Box 2
    • Freedom: the independent journal published by the Church of Scientology, 1974 Box 2
    • Spirit Magazine, Vol. 1, No. 2, January-February 1974 Box 2
    • Third World Media Letter, Vol. 1, No. 2, May 1974 Box 2
    • Teaching your child to read by Constance Van Brunt Johnson, in Ebony, August 1974 Box 2
    • Common Ground, Harvard Radical Union, October 29, 1974 Box 2
    • The Militant: a socialist newsweekly published in the interests of the working people, [1974-1975] Box 2
    • First annual Ebony black music poll in Ebony Magazine, undated (4 p.) Box 2

• Series: Administrative records, 1963-1976 (41 folders)
  Access Restrictions: Materials are restricted. Consult reference staff for details.
  • Financial records, 1973-1975 (1 folder) Box 3
    Scope and Content: The series provides logistical documentation of some events sponsored by the Association. Contains bills and receipts, many of which are from Harvard University departments for items such as custodial services and rental of audio-visual equipment.
  • Correspondence, 1970-1975 (8 folders)
    Scope and Content: The correspondence concerns events (including conferences, fund raisers, and meetings), admissions at Harvard and Radcliffe, programs at Harvard and elsewhere, taskforces and committees. It includes incoming correspondence from individuals, offices, and organizations at Harvard and elsewhere, and correspondence among individual officers of the Association.
    • Correspondence, November 1970 Box 3
    • Correspondence, September 1973 -February 1974 (3 folders) Box 3
    • Correspondence, July-August 1974 Box 3
    • Correspondence, December 1974 - January 1975 Box 3
    • Correspondence, March-April 1975 Box 3
    • Correspondence, December 1975 Box 3
  • Constitution, 1963-1974 (2 folders)
    Related Material: See also the AFRO Questionnaire in the General Administrative Records series.
    • Constitution, revised December 10, 1963 Box 3
      2 copies; 1 is incomplete
    • Outline for revision of AFRO constitution, 1973-1974 Box 3
  • Photographs of protest, March 1972 (1 folder) Box 3
    Description: One 8 in. x 10 in. black and white photograph and five 3 in. x 3 in. color photographs. Four of the photographs show black crosses planted in Harvard Yard during the protest of black students against Harvard's financial ties to the Gulf Oil Corporation. The students objected to these ties because of the company's investments in Angola and Mozambique. The crosses were intended to symbolize the death of freedom fighters from Angola and Mozambique. Two of the photographs show protestors marching in Harvard Yard.
  • General administrative records, 1965-1966, 1970-1975 (9 folders)
    • [Meeting minutes, 1965-1966] Box 3
      Acquisition Information: Accession 17367; 2006 May 26, Harvard Black Students Association
    • Meeting agendas and notes, 1970-1972 Box 3
    • Meeting notes, 1974-1975 Box 3
      Contents: Handwritten notes from Executive Committee and general AFRO meetings.
    • Notes, drafts, and lists, 1973-1975 and undated Box 3
      Contents: Handwritten and printed notes, drafts, and lists.
    • AFRO questionnaire, 1974-1975 Box 3
      Contents: Background and prepatory notes for the questionnaire, distributed to undergraduates during the 1974-1975 academic year, as well as a copy of and notes on the organization's constitution.
    • AFRO questionnaires and responses 1974-1975 Box 3
      Contents: Completed responses to the questionnaire distributed by the Association.
    • Election statements, 1974-1975 Box 3
    • AFRO elections, 1973-1974 Box 3
      Contents: Election statements by candidates, information on election procedures, and a blank ballot form.
    • AFRO Recruitment Committee memo, 1973-1974 Box 3
  • Reports and publications, 1967-1974 (6 folders)
    Arrangement: The archivist arranged these in chronological order.
    • Evaluation report of the Association of Afro and Afro-American Students at Harvard and Radcliffe, [1967-1968] (15 p.; 1 folder) Box 3
      Committee Membership: The report was prepared by The Evaluation Committee [of AFRO], composed of eight undergraduate members of the organization.
    • Harvard-Radcliffe Afro-American Cultural Center, Inc. by Francesta E. Farmer, coordinator, July 1969 Box 3
    • Report of the Committee on University Relations with Corporate Enterprise, January 1971 (6 p.; 1 folder) Box 3
    • Progress report [on the involvement of the Pan-African Liberation Committee in the Gulf Oil controversy, c. 1972] Box 3
      Scope and Content: The report contains a chronology of the Pan-African Liberation Committee from June 1971 through February 1972, detailing its involvement with the Gulf Oil controversy and strike in the spring of 1972.
    • Harvard-Radcliffe AFRO Black Student Directory, 1973-1974 Box 3
    • Seniors and freshmen at Harvard, c. 1974 (10 p.; 1 folder) Box 3
  • Subject files, 1963-1976 and undated (14 folders)
    • Strike Committee, spring 1972 Box 4
      Contents: Strike information and schedule, and resolutions of the mass meeting, April 20, 1972.
    • Gulf Oil controversy, spring 1972 Box 4
      Scope and Content: Contains an oral presentation [unclear by whom to whom or when], incomplete
    • Committee to Develop the W.E.B. DuBois Institute for Afro-American Research, 1973 Box 4
    • [Ad-Hoc Committee of Black Students of Harvard and Radcliffe, 1969] Box 4
    • African Fast Day, November 29, 1973 Box 4
      Historical Note: African Fast Day was sponsored by the Association.
      Contents: Sign-up sheets.
    • Afro-American Studies Department, Harvard University, 1969 and 1975 Box 4
    • Afro-American Student Union, 1974 Box 4
    • ACORN, [Arkansas Community Organziations for Reform Now], undated Box 4
    • Association of Black Radcliffe Women, 1975 Box 4
    • DISC, DuBois Institute Student Coalition, [ca. 1974-1975] Box 4
      Contents: Committee minutes, drafts and final versions of proposals, flyers, information sheets, press releases, and petitions.
    • Birth of a Nation controversy, 1975 Box 4
    • Harvard-Radcliffe Afro-American Cultural Center, 1972-1974 Box 4
    • Blacks at Harvard: crisis and change by Martin Kilson, 1973 Box 4
      Contents: Photocopy of Kilson's article, published in the April 1973 Harvard Bulletin and a photocopy of Kilson's contentions: a reply. Also contains galley prints of Kilson's article from the Harvard Bulletin.
    • United Committee of Third World Organizations, [c. 1974-1975] Box 4

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