Solidarity Committee of the Capital District records,
- Author:
- Solidarity Committee of the Capital District.
- Call Number:
- MSS APAP-042 local
- Abstract:
- The collection contains minutes of all Solidarity Committee of the Capital District meetings held between November 1983 and May 1990; and an extensive run (July 1984-December 1997) of the SCCD's monthly newsletter, Solidarity Notes, which began publication in 1984. The bulk of the collection consists of subject files, some predating the founding of the SCCD and its predecessor organization, the Greyhound Strikers' Solidarity Committee of the Capital District. Of particular note are copies of personal correspondence between actor and labor activist Ed Asner and SCCD chairman John Funicello. There are also 11 videotapes featuring events like rallies and guest speakers. Many of the files contain photographs, most notably, photos of Cesar Chavez and Jesse Jackson during Chavez's hunger strike in 1988 and photos of Solidarity Committee members at rallies and being arrested.
- Historical Note:
- The Greyhound Strikers Solidarity Committee of the Capital District was created by Albany, New York-area labor union activists who supported the autumn 1983 Amalgamated Transit Union strike against Greyhound Bus Lines. After the strike ended, the organization was reconstituted as the Solidarity Committee of the Capital District (SCCD), a standing committee of the Albany County Federation of Labor (ACFL). In 1990, national officials of the AFL-CIO stated that the SCCD was not mentioned in the ACFL's January 1984 minutes and thus the Committee had no formal ties to AFL-CIO. The SCCD's mission is "to promote solidarity and understanding of the labor movement, through educating and organizing in times of need." Its founders envisioned the organization actively supporting strike activity, protesting manufacturing plant closures, aiding unemployed workers, lobbying for political reform, and organizing non-union workers. It sponsored showings of labor-oriented films, established training sessions for organizers, and consistently supported workers engaged in area labor disputes. The SCCD established ties to reform-oriented organizations such as the Student Association of the University at Albany, SUNY and the New York State [Family] Farm Association, and supported campaigns against South African apartheid, human-rights abuses in Central and Latin America, nuclear weapons proliferation, and use of synthetic bovine growth hormone.
- Physical Description:
- 20.8 cu. ft and 11 videotapes
- Access Terms:
- Access to the collection is unrestricted.
- Notes:
- In 1990, through the Harry Van Arsdale, Jr., Labor History Project, materials were lent to the University Libraries, M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives, for photocopying, which totaled roughly .75 cubic feet. All materials transferred since then have been the originals. local
- Subjects:
- Labor unions Social aspects New York (State), Labor unions New York (State), Labor unions New York (State) Schenectady, Labor unions, and Labor unions Social aspects
- Genres/Forms:
- Minutes. aat and Newsletters. aat
- Corporate Names:
- Solidarity Committee of the Capital District and Greyhound Strikers Solidarity Committee of the Capital District
- Geographic Terms:
- New York (State) and New York (State) Schenectady
Access
Rare books do not circulate
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