Collections : [Oral History Archives at Columbia]

Eric Adams provided two sessions of oral history interviews addressing the same subjects: his career in the New York police Department, the history of the Guardians Association, and the founding of 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care. He also goes into some detail about his personal background, including memories about police community relationships in Queens, where he grew up in the 1960s and 1970s, and his efforts to speak out against racism in the police department.

Reuben Bankhead speaks primarily of the NYPD Guardians Association, and its importance to aiding the careers of black police officers during his time with the New York City Police Department. He shares how influential the advice of more experienced police was when he was starting out, as well their advocacy and support for black officers to take promotion exams. He comments on the affect of the lawsuits brought by the Guardians Association, aiding later generations of police officers. He also touches on how policing has changed from the 1960s and 1970s into the 2000s, and the importance of residency requirements to community policing.

This is a group oral history interview with Reuben C. Bankhead, Charles C. Coleman, Lester H. Grissom, Leroy Hendricks, and Robert Nero. They share stories from their time in the New York City Police Department (NYPD) during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. They were all members of the NYPD Guardians Association, and speak about how the organization influenced their careers. The conversation spans racial equality issues in NYPD, including promotion exams, and instances of retaliation for speaking out against prejudice. They describe the conflict between the NYPD Guardians Association and the NYPD Patrolmen's Benevolent Association over the attempted establishment of a Civilian Complaint Review Board in 1966. They also remember several lawsuits reversing discriminatory hiring and promotional practices.

Barron discusses the origins of Cravath, Swaine and Moore, LLP's relationship with Phoenix House. He explains his own exposure to the therapeutic community model. He elucidates Phoenix House's relationship to the justice system, which was its largest client, and his legal battles that allowed Phoenix to retain its treatment structure. Finally, he talks about more recent efforts to improve Phoenix's data management structure.

Bell begins with a discussion of his initial turn to drug use as a coping mechanism for dealing with academic stresses. After multiple arrests and stints in jail, Bell eventually winds up at Phoenix House, having resolved himself to getting and staying clean. Bell takes great comfort in the therapeutic community, likening it to the community he grew up in. He discusses his growing attachment to Phoenix House and to the people there during his time in-program. Eventually, Bell narrates how he got a job at the payroll department in Phoenix House and the insights he has gained during his time in the organization.

Bennetts chronicles her experience profiling Mitchell Rosenthal for Vanity Fair. She also discusses Nancy Reagan's reneging on the Lake View facility, and her involvement with "the drug issue" more generally. The interview is peppered with details about being a female journalist during the 1970s-1980s.

Son of Chinese immigrants to Hawaii; return to China, 1911; Commissioner of finance, Canton, 1919-1920; Commissioner of land, Canton, 1926; general manager Canton-Hankow Railway, 1928; managing director Shanghai-Nanking Railway and Shanghai-Hangchow Railway, Shanghai, 1928-29; mayor of Hangchow, 1930; commissioner of finance, Shanghai, 1931; commissioner of land, Shanghai, 1933-1934; visits abroad; rehabilitating shipping; second Japanese invasion; refuge in Macao, hazardous journey to Shiukwan; trek to Chungking, return to America

Early days in China; student in United States, 1904-1909; Kiangsu provincial government and bank, 1910-1915; Shanghai Commercial and Savings Bank, 1915-1937; China Travel Service, interest in insurance business; National Revolution of 1925-1927; travel before the war; currency reform and 1936 Silver Mission; views on general situation to 1937; contributions to War of Resistance; War of Resistance, 1937-1945; postwar years, 1946-1949; transition and revival, 1949-1961. Audio does not represent full interview content. Most audio associated with interview was not retained. Content on reel was retained as sample of source material for edited transcript

Interview audio has been digitized.

Alfonso begins the interview by describing his family. He then recalls his life as a student. He also recalls the period when he contracted hepatitis. Alfonso comments on his first approach to the Church and his family's link to religion. Alfonso describes his seminary studies to become a pastor and the times when he had to leave because of his unstable health. Alfonso reflects on the persecution of religious movements during the Revolution and on the Cuban press. Finally, Alfonso discusses the role of youth in the continuity of the Revolution and the link that young people establish with the United States.

In the first session, Alicia discusses her birth and the death of her father. Alicia comments on her passage through different levels of education and discusses public schools in the pre-revolutionary period. Finally, she discusses the practices she carried out as a social worker in impoverished neighborhoods.

In the first session, Alina recalls her childhood in San Miguel del Padrón, a settlement in Havana. She also recalls the bond she had with her cousin, the Elián González episode, and her time at the Lenín Institute. Alina describes how she entered the Instituto Superior de Arte. She recalls her fondness for art from a very young age. Alina describes her life at the Instituto Superior de Arte and discusses the lack of economic resources to produce films.

A letter of recommendation dated 1991 for Jeff Brodsky written by Basil Talbott, Washington correspondent for the Chicago Sun-Times, and a cover letter and resume dated 2003 written by Brodsky.

Various media coverage of Jeff's early work, including screenshots of articles, a text document with multiple articles pasted together, and a video clip of Brodsky's appearance on "Sonya Live." Also included is an interview conducted by Howard Brodsky with his son, and an article published in the New Hampshire Union Leader about Jeff Brodsky and Howard Brodsky's relationship and philanthropic work from 2021.

55 photographs, mostly solo shots of Brodsky from various events, inlcuding head shots.

In this two session interview, Will Anderson reflects on his development as an activist for the environment and animals. Among issues examined are his decision to become a vegetarian and the impact of personal diet choices on the environment. Anderson talks about his education, decisions about college, his work with the Peace Corps, service in the United states Armed Forces (USAF), and his honorable discharge after becoming a conscientious objector. Additionally, he explains the connection between the yearlong travel to Europe and India and his worldview, the development of his sensitivity to animals, and his activist spirit. Anderson discusses his work with Greenpeace, Native American communities, involvement in protest activity and subsequent arrests, and founding of Ecology House and the Marine Animal Coalition (MAC). He also discusses his battle with cancer and experiences as a gay man.

In this two-session interview, Theadora Capaldo discusses the range of her activities in animal advocacy. She begins by describing her youth in North Shore, Massachusetts and the attitudes towards animals that she encountered. Capaldo describes becoming an anti-vivisectionist in 6th grade after reading a teacher's material from the New England Anti-Vivisection Society (NEAVS) and experiences rescuing stray dogs as a youth. She discusses her education in the mental health fields and the connections between human abuse and animal abuse, and the influence of feminism and environmentalism on her outlook.

Over four sessions, Ann Cotrell Free describes her life, advocacy for animals, and the philosophical underpinning for her activism. She begins by discussing the growth of her consciousness about treatment of animals during her childhood, including incidents with domestic animals, agricultural animals, transport animals, and fox hunts. She describes activism while attending Barnard College, and analyzes how inconsistent attitudes cause injustice. She discusses her entry into journalism and coverage of World War II, working for the United Nations Relief in China, and working for the Marshall Plan in Europe.

In this interview, Abu-Lughod describes her time at Williams College, the Institute for Advanced Study, and New York University. Abu-Lughod cites her appointment at Williams—where she attended a reading group with Catharine A. MacKinnon, Adrienne Rich, and Wendy Brown—as her first engagement with women's studies. Abu-Lughod describes the impact this had on her early work,Writing Women's Worlds. Abu-Lughod then discusses her time at the Institute for Advanced Study, where she worked alongside scholars such as Judith Butler, Evelyn Fox Keller, and Donna Haraway. She goes on to summarize her time at New York University, during which she participated in a Ford Foundation Grant effort to internationalize women's studies.

Adams begins this interview with a recollection of her arrival at Columbia in 1997. She describes the interviewing and vetting process, the completion of her dissertation, and her experience settling into New York City. Adams characterizes IRWGS at that time as a center of leaders. She discusses the feminist pedagogy course she co-taught with Julie Crawford. Adams reflects on the students of IRWGS, the institute's hierarchy, and Columbia's institutional environment. She gives examples of academic support within IRWGS, including her first presentation in the Feminist Interventions Series and the formation of a faculty writing group which included Kristina Milnor, Sandhya Shukla, and Julie Crawford. Adams chronicles her interest in Masculinity Studies, her co-authorship of theMasculine Studies Readerwith David Safran, and the limitations of the field.

In this interview, Barry reflects on her arrival at Columbia University in 1985. She begins by describing her upbringing in Butler, New Jersey, citing the challenges of being one of nine children and a student in an overcrowded small town high school. Barry goes on to describe her time at Gettysburg College and her pursuit of a Master's degree in history at Columbia. Barry reflects on her decision to move to New York. She shares her experience of coming out and her subsequent encounters with homophobia. Barry characterizes her participation in IRWGS and recalls her efforts in GABLES, the Gay, Bisexual, and Lesbian Employees and Supporters group, which existed from 1993-1997 and arose to combat the inaccessibility to married housing, health benefits, and life insurance for queer couples at the University. Barry describes the limitations of GABLES in a larger discussion of the long and difficult process by which queer women, transgender, and LGBTQ people of color struggled at the University.