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This collection is predominantly composed of Ernest van den Haag's publications from 1950-2000, including articles in published form, drafts, and related correspondence.

The Eugene McLaren Papers document his academic pursuits as well as research he conducted while on the faculty at the University at Albany.

Hugo A. Bedau (Ph.D., Harvard, 1961) was a commentator, scholar, and activist for the abolition of capital punishment. He was a prominent spokesperson in the abolitionist movement and well-known for his scholarship and writing concerning the death penalty and the challenge to separate logical arguments from moral arguments.

The Illinois Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty (ICADP) formed in 1976 as the Illinois Coalition Against the Death Penalty by Mary Alice Rankin and other activist groups and organizations to try to prevent passage of capital punishment legislation in Illinois. After the state adopted the death penalty in 1977, ICADP expanded its grassroots legislative, education, and communication activities to try to inform the public about flaws and injustices in the Illinois capital punishment system and promote humane alternatives to the death penalty.

The John H. Herz Papers consist of documents and autobiographical materials, professional and personal correspondence, copies of Herz's published and unpublished writings, texts of numerous speeches and lectures, teaching materials, as well as Herz's research collections on topics relating to his writings and lectures.

The Michelle Crone Papers document her experience as a feminist and lesbian activist from the early 1980s until the mid-1990s. The collection includes material from here position as National Civil Disobedience Coordinator for the 1987 National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights, and as a member of the Executive Committee for the 1993 March on Washington for Lesbian, Gay, and Bi Equal Rights and Liberation. Also present are records from Michelle Crone's management of a number of women's festivals from 1982 to 1996—most notably Rhythm Fest and the Cultural Festival at Gay Games IV—and records from her Capital District production company, Elword Productions. The collection also includes the records from her experience with the Seneca Women's Encampment for a Future of Peace and Justice, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, and the National Lesbian Conference. Also included are her personal correspondence, records of her undergraduate studies with the theater and women's studies programs at the University at Albany, SUNY, and political literature from a number of progressive causes at the national and local levels.

The M. Watt Espy papers chronicle the extensive research efforts that led to the creation of the Capital Punishment Research Project and the database known as the Espy File. Espy spent three decades gathering and indexing documentation of legal executions in the United States. His papers contain both primary and secondary sources used to catalog thousands of instances of capital punishment in the United States and its territories since the 1600s. The collection includes material from corrections records, newspapers, county histories, legal proceedings, and books. In addition to the records pertaining specifically to the death penalty, there is also a selection of magazines collected by Espy that cover true crime stories as well as life in the American Old West.

The papers of Nancy Papish document her involvement with Clearwater, North River Friends of Clearwater (NRFC), and the campaign to stop Hydro-Quebec's development plan for James Bay. These papers document the environmental activism of Nancy Papish from the 1970s through the 1990s. Included are meeting minutes, notes, mailings, press releases, news clippings, magazine articles, programs, and publications. The Clearwater files contain near-complete runs of newsletters produced by both NRFC and the parent Clearwater organization. Evidence of NRFC's outreach activities is found in a slide show titled "This Is Clearwater" and numerous poster displays. Documentation of Clearwater's organization and administration, such as meeting minutes, internal reports, and committee files, are almost entirely absent. There is little information about the membership of Clearwater. The James Bay files contain materials from several organizations.

Since 1976 the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty has been working to educate the public about the failings and inconsistencies of capital punishment in the United States. Founded after the Gregg v. Georgia Supreme Court decision in 1976, the NCADP has emerged as one of the more influential national anti-death penalty organizations. The collection contains the group's internal case files, administrative material, publications, petitions, photographic materials, video tapes, and audio cassettes.

The Norman Studer Papers document his career as both an educator and ardent Catskill folklorist. The collection includes significant material relating to his work as director of the Downtown Community School in New York City and Camp Woodland in the Catskills.