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Collection Number: 04704

Collection Title: Southern Justice Institute Records, 1978-1993.

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.


expand/collapse Expand/collapse Collection Overview

Size 111.0 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 14360 items)
Abstract The Southern Justice Institute, a public interest law firm, originally the southern division of the Christic Institute of Washington, D.C. It opened in 1985 as the Christic Institute South under director Lewis Pitts in Winston-Salem, N.C., relocating to Carrboro, N.C., a year later, and to Durham, N.C., in 1991. Formed to provide legal aid and organizing assistance to racial and other minorities in the South seeking political empowerment, the Institute incorporated as the independent Southern Justice Institute in 1992 and operated until 1994, handling, in its last two years of operation, mostly child advocacy cases. General abstract: Records are primarily court documents and case files with a small number of financial and administrative Records, relating to legal challenges to political corruption, racial discrimination, obstruction of voting rights, school segregation, exploitation of consumers and tenants, and efforts to gain legal status for children. Many items pertain to the defense of Eddie Hatcher, a Lumbee Indian, and Timothy Jacobs, a Tuscarora Indian, charged with kidnapping while trying to bring attention to corruption in Robeson County, N.C. Other cases include those on behalf of African-American elected officials in Winston-Salem; a black lung union activist in Charleston, W.Va.; and a postal worker in Chatattanooga, Tenn., all charged with fraud. There are many materials relating to a case on sexual abuse of patients and another on desecration of an African-American cemetery on Daufuskie Island, S.C. Other cases, fought with the National Child Rights Alliance and the National Committee for the Rights of the Child, pertain to custody and adoption battles, the rights of lesbian mothers, and abused children suing their abusers. These include the Gregory K. and the Kimberly Mays cases. Note that a description of organizations relating to the Southern Justice Institute is cataloged separately.
Creator Southern Justice Institute (Durham, N.C.)
Curatorial Unit University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection.
Language English
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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Information For Users

Restrictions to Access
No restrictions. Open for research.
Copyright Notice
Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], in the Southern Justice Institute Records #4704, Southern Historical Collection, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Acquisitions Information
Received from Lewis Pitts, director of the Southern Justice Institute, in August 1994 (Acc. 94095) and February 1995 (Acc. 95025).
Sensitive Materials Statement
Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. § 132 1 et seq.), and Article 7 of the North Carolina State Personnel Act (Privacy of State Employee Personnel Records, N.C.G.S. § 126-22 et seq.). Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill assumes no responsibility.
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Processed by: Jill Snider with assistance from Jacqueline Dean, April 1995

Encoded by: ByteManagers Inc., 2008

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subject Headings

The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.

Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Related Collections

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Biographical Information

The Southern Justice Institute, a public interest law firm founded in 1992 in Durham, N.C., had its origins in the Christic Institute, a Washington, D.C., law firm and religious public policy center formed in 1979 by attorneys, educators, and organizers who had directed the well-publicized Karen Silkwood Case during the late 1970s. In 1985, the Institute opened its Southern division, the Christic Institute South, in Winston-Salem, N.C., with Institute lawyer Lewis Pitts as director. The southern division of the Institute one year later moved its headquarters to Carrboro, N.C., and then in 1991 to Durham, N.C. By 1992, it had separated from the Christic Institute to become an independent organization known as the Southern Justice Institute. The latter ceased operations in 1994 after being fined under Rule 11 sanctions for bringing what the court considered a frivolous lawsuit.

The Christic Institute South set as its specific goals to provide legal aid and organizing assistance to racial and other minorities in the South struggling to empower themselves politically. Suits brought and defense cases litigated prior to 1993 were for the most part of a civil rights nature, including efforts on behalf of activists working to gain political and civil rights for African-Americans, Native Americans, and various activists seeking to protect the rights of unions, tenants, patients, and consumers. Between 1985 and 1992, the organization also served as legal counsel for the National Child Rights Alliance. After 1992, the newly formed Southern Justice Institute maintained this function, and during 1993-1994 was involved in the development of the Legal Action Project of the National Committee for the Rights of the Child. Beginning in 1993, the Institute participated in several suits under the auspices of the Committee, focusing principally on child custody and adoption cases aimed at gaining recognition by the courts of children as legal persons with access to the legal process.

Lewis Pitts, director of the Christic Institute South, 1985-1992, and of the Southern Justice Institute, 1992-1994, also served on the board of trustees of the Southern Organizing Committee and as a consultant to the Citizens' Participation Project, an organization which grew out of the Institute's work in helping local African-American residents restore city government to Keysville, Ga. Pitts continues at present to work for the NCRC's Legal Action Project.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Scope and Content

Records are mostly court documents and case files, 1985-1994, of the Christic Institute South and its successor Southern Justice Institute pertaining to public law suits litigated or proposed for litigation in West Virginia, North and South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and California, and to child advocacy cases litigated in Florida, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, and Tennessee. The bulk of the records pertain to cases documented in Subseries 2.1, 2.2, and 2.3 listed below. A few records also appear on cases litigated by the Christic Institute, parent organization of the Christic Institute South (see Series 2.8 and 2.11).

Administrative files (Series 1) document the finances of the Institute, especially funding it received from the Campaign for Human Development. Newsletters contained in the series offer a valuable starting point for work in the records on civil rights, often providing case synopses and background information.

The suits in Series 2 document mostly issues of racial discrimination, including harassment of African-American elected officials and voter registration activists, the entrapment and harassment of African-American workers and union organizers, and segregation and unequal treatment of African-Americans in the public schools and on the job. Other areas covered are the rights of whistle-blowers, tenants, consumers, and patients, and the rights of activists to organize and protest publicly. A few items appear on environmental issues (Series 2.12). The case of John Edward Clark (a.k.a. Eddie Hatcher) is the most extensively documented, and includes information not only on the Federal government's suit against him for hostage-taking, but also on his organizing efforts among North Carolina Indians and his campaign to expose political corruption in Robeson County, N.C. Also of interest are materials in Subseries 2.12 about opposition to the Columbus Quincentennial Jubilee Commission.

Series 3 documents the child advocacy efforts of the Institute in its capacity as legal counsel for the National Child Rights Alliance and later for the Legal Action Project of the National Committee for the Rights of the Child. It includes both administrative files related to the Institute's relationship with both organizations, and case files, concerning mostly child custody cases, adoption cases, and a paternity suit challenging a lesbian mother's custody of her daughter. Topics include the access of children to the legal system, the rights of abused children, the rights of biological parents versus those of adoptive parents, and the legal definition of family.

A few records of the original Christic Institute appear in Subseries 2.8, which documents investigations into the Iran-Contra Affair and the lawsuit stemming from them, and in Subseries 2.11, where a few items pertain to the Karen Silkwood Case and to a case brought by former South Carolina senator Tom Turnipseed against the South Carolina Utilities Commission.

The collection also provides information on the activities of Lewis Pitts in his role as a consultant to the Citizens' Participation Project and as a member of the board of trustees of the Southern Organizing Committee (Subseries 2.13).

Photographs (Series 4) include mostly color snapshots of clients and organizers in Daufuskie Island, S.C., Keysville, Ga., Screven County, Ga., Robeson County, N.C., and Selma, Ala. A few portraits and snapshots (color and black and white) of Southern Justice Institute staff also appear.

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Contents list

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series Quick Links

1. Administrative Files, 1985-1992 and undated.
2. Civil Rights and Social Justice Cases, circa 1978-1979, 1983-1994.
2.1. Robeson County, N.C., Hostage-Taking Case, 1988-1990.
2.2. Jeanne Lenzer Whistle Blower Suit, circa 1985-1990.
2.3. Daufuskie Island, S.C., Cemetery Desecration Suit , circa 1989-1993.
2.4. Harassment of African-American Elected Officials Cases, circa 1985-1992.
2.5. Screven County, Ga., School Board Suit, circa 1991.
2.6. Keysville, Ga., Suit to Restore Local Government, circa 1985-1989.
2.7. Bobby Ward Discrimination Suit, circa 1986-1988.
2.8. La Penca Iran-Contra Case, circa 1985-1992.
2.9. Holmes County, Miss., Sweethome Water and Sewer_Authority Suit, circa 1985-1988.
2.10. Selma, Ala., School Segregation Suit, circa 1990.
2.11. Miscellaneous Cases, circa 1978-1979, 1983-1989, 1991-1994.
2.12. Unlitigated Cases and Requests for Aid, 1985-1988, 1991-1994.
2.13. Related Projects, 1985-1986, 1988-1993.
3. Child Advocacy Cases, 1987-1994.
3.1. National Child Rights Alliance, 1987-1994.
3.1.1. Administrative Files, 1987-1993.
3.1.2. Gregory K. Case, 1992-1994.
3.2. National Committee for the Rights of the Child (Legal Action Project), circa 1991-1994.
3.2.1. Administrative Files, 1991-1994.
3.2.2. Grissom Custody Suit, 1993-1994.
3.2.3. DeBoer Custody Suit, 1992-1994.
3.2.4. Thomas Custody Suit, 1993-1994.
3.2.5. Martinez Custody Suit, 1993-1994.
3.2.6. Keene Custody Suit, 1989-1994.
3.2.7. Roth Adoption Suit, 1994.
3.2.8. Paternity Suit Challenging Lesbian Mother's Custody, 1994.
3.2.9. May's Adoption Suit, 1993-1994.
3.2.10. Klug Custody Case, 1992-1994.
4. Pictures, Circa 1985-1993.

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 1. Administrative Files, 1985-1992 and undated.

About 400 items.

Mostly financial materials relating to the operation of the Christic Institute South/Southern Justice Institute, including correspondence, grant proposals and applications, financial and bank statements, insurance Papers, and check stubs. There are also publicity items, including brochures, progress reports, newspaper clippings, and newsletters, including the Southern Justice Institute's People's Advocate, 1991-1992, and a few issues of the Christic Institute's Convergence. Many of the financial items are related to the Campaign for Human Development, a major funding source for the Institute's projects.

Box 1

Administrative files, 1985-1992 and undated

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 2. Civil Rights and Social Justice Cases, circa 1978-1979, 1983-1994.

About 10,780 items.

Court documents and case files of the Christic Institute South/Southern Justice Institute pertaining to civil rights and social justice cases between 1985-1993. Includes mostly racial discrimination suits, as well as suits on behalf of tenants, consumers, patients, and political activists.

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 2.1. Robeson County, N.C., Hostage-Taking Case, 1988-1990.

About 2700 items.

Files pertaining to the trial of John Edward Clark (a.k.a. Eddie Hatcher) and Timothy Jacobs, including material on Jacobs' extradition from New York (3 boxes) and files kept on the Rule 11 sanctions brought against the defense attorneys in the case (6 boxes). Files include court documents, including pleadings, discovery materials, exhibits, and affidavits, as well as witness files, hostage statements taken by the FBI, newspaper clippings and press releases, files of the FBI and North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, and audio tapes. Besides court proceedings, the records document political corruption in Robeson County; a recall effort against Sheriff Kevin Stone; the political and social activities of Lumbee, Tuscarora, and other Native American groups in Robeson County and New York State; and the activities of religious and political groups supporting the defense efforts.

Box 2-18c

Robeson County, N.C., Hostage-Taking Case, circa 1988-1990

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 2.2. Jeanne Lenzer Whistle Blower Suit, circa 1985-1990.

About 2000 items.

Court documents, including depositions, affidavits, pleadings, and exhibits, and case files, including correspondence, investigative reports, notes, diaries, and background research pertaining to Lenzer v. Flaherty et al., a suit protesting the punishment of an employee, Jeanne Lenzer, who exposed the sexual abuse of patients by another employee at the Butner, N.C., Alcohol Recovery Center. Scattered items appear on the National Child Rights Alliance (formerly People Allied for Child Advocacy) founded by Lenzer. An outline and chronology of the case appear at the beginning of Box 19.

Box 19-27

Box 19

Box 20

Box 21

Box 22

Box 23

Box 24

Box 25

Box 26

Box 27

Jeanne Lenzer Whistle Blower Suit, circa 1985-1990

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 2.3. Daufuskie Island, S.C., Cemetery Desecration Suit , circa 1989-1993.

About 1575 items.

Court documents, including pleadings and depositions, and case files, including correspondence, newspaper clippings, cemetery maps and land Records, and publicity materials produced by supporters of those bringing suit against John Scurry of the Melrose Corporation for constructing a building over an African-American cemetery. Items also document the activities of the Daufuskie Island Community Improvement Club and the Daufuskie Island Cooperative, as well as individual efforts to obtain services, especially transportation, for African-American residents of Daufuskie and Hilton Head Islands. Of interest is a videotape of JoAnn Dimond of Hilton Head Island, who was involved in organizing efforts. Additional materials appear for a suit brought by the Coastal Council against the Ethics Commission of South Carolina.

Box 28-34

Box 28

Box 29

Box 30

Box 31

Box 32

Box 33

Box 34

Daufuskie Island, S.C., Cemetery Desecration Suit, circa 1989-1993

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 2.4. Harassment of African-American Elected Officials Cases, circa 1985-1992.

About 780 items.

Court documents, including pleadings and exhibits, and case files, including correspondence, newspaper clippings, FBI reports and witness interviews, notes, and other items, pertaining to the trial of four African-American elected officials in Winston-Salem, N.C., for alleged financial wrongdoing. Organizations documented are People Are Treated Human, Inc. (PATH) of Winston-Salem and the Guilford Community Action Program of Greensboro. Of note is an audio taped speech of Louis Farrakhan delivered in April 1992 entitled "The Winston-Salem Four." Files include information on the activities of the four officials--Rodney Sumler, Larry Womble, Patrick Hairston, and Rev. Lee Faye Mack. Box 35 contains a folder labelled "Background on the Case of the Winston-Salem Four."

Box 35-39

Box 35

Box 36

Box 37

Box 38

Box 39

Harassment of African-American Elected Officials Cases, circa 1985-1992

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 2.5. Screven County, Ga., School Board Suit, circa 1991.

About 675 items.

Mostly case files, including correspondence, newspaper clippings, school Records, and records of the Parents Action Committee in a suit brought against the Screven County School Board for racial discrimination in the county school system. Only scattered court documents appear.

Box 40-43

Box 40

Box 41

Box 42

Box 43

Screven County, Ga., School Board Suit, circa 1991

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 2.6. Keysville, Ga., Suit to Restore Local Government, circa 1985-1989.

About 410 items.

Court documents, mostly pleadings, and case files, including correspondence, newspaper clippings, press releases, and newsletters, legal notes, case expense sheets, research materials, maps and deeds, and petitions relating to a suit brought by African-American citizens to reestablish city government in Keysville, Ga. Included is the narrative for a video production entitled "Justice for Keysville, Now!" and materials on "The Southern Tour for Power."

Box 44-46

Box 44

Box 45

Box 46

Keysville, Ga., Suit to Restore Local Government, circa 1985-1989

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 2.7. Bobby Ward Discrimination Suit, circa 1986-1988.

About 150 items.

Mostly court documents, including pleadings, affidavits, and exhibits, with scattered correspondence and legal notes pertaining to the defense of Robert Ward against the U.S. Post Office in a suit charging theft of stamps.

Box 46-47

Box 46

Box 47

Bobby Ward Discrimination Suit, circa 1986-1988

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 2.8. La Penca Iran-Contra Case, circa 1985-1992.

About 460 items.

Investigative files on the role of George Bush, Oliver North, Richard Secord, and others in the Iran-Contra Affair. There are also court documents, including depositions, exhibits, and affidavits, from the case brought by journalists Tony Avirgan and Martha Honey against John Hull, Richard Secord, and others for personal injuries suffered when a bomb was exploded at a press conference in La Penca, Nicaragua, and for attempts to block their investigation into the bombing and into drug-smuggling activities of backers of the Nicaraguan Contras.

Box 48-50

Box 48

Box 49

Box 50

La Penca Iran-Contra Case, circa 1985-1992

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 2.9. Holmes County, Miss., Sweethome Water and Sewer_Authority Suit, circa 1985-1988.

About 225 items.

Case files and court records for a suit brought against the Sweethome Water and Sewer Authority for overcharging of and theft from customers ( Frances Adams et al. v. Sweethome Water and Sewer Authority) and case files and court records for a suit brought by the State of Mississippi against four Holmes County residents for protesting in front of the Sweethome Water and Sewer Authority ( State of Mississippi v. Belinda Thompson, Wilma Powell, Loretta Beyer, and Mary Braun). Case files include mostly correspondence, newspaper clippings, project records of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, and financial records of the Sweethome Water and Sewer Authority. Information also appears on the role of the Rural Organizing and Cultural Center in aiding those bringing suit against Sweethome.

Box 51

Holmes County, Miss., Sweethome Water and Sewer_Authority Suit, circa 1985-1988

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 2.10. Selma, Ala., School Segregation Suit, circa 1990.

About 275 items.

Correspondence, personal statements, affidavits, press releases, newspaper clippings, and scattered court documents for a suit brought by parents against the Selma, Alabama, school system charging de facto segregation through "tracking" of African-American students into less challenging academic courses.

Box 52

Selma, Ala., School Segregation Suit, circa 1990

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 2.11. Miscellaneous Cases, circa 1978-1979, 1983-1989, 1991-1994.

About 980 items.

Arrangement: by case.

Court Records, including pleadings, depositions, and exhibits, and case files, including correspondence, newspaper clippings, case and trial notes, publicity posters, audiotapes, and other items pertaining to several suits litigated by the Southern Justice Institute and the Christic Institute. Allegations in the suits include racial discrimination, harassment of union officials, voter registration fraud, police brutality, and the denial of tenants' rights.

Box 53-66

Box 53

Box 54

Box 55

Box 56

Box 57

Box 58

Box 59

Box 60

Box 61

Box 62

Box 63

Box 64

Box 65

Box 66

Miscellaneous cases, circa 1978-1979, 1983-1989, 1991-1994

Box 53-54

Box 53

Box 54

Larry Little Case in re Daryl Hunt Defense Fund Dates: 1985-1986. Items: About 85. Location: Winston-Salem, N.C. Topic: Charges against Alderman Larry Little for misspending monies from the Daryl Hunt Defense Fund. Mostly FBI files on Little's earlier involvement with the Black Panther Party.

Box 55-56

Box 55

Box 56

U.S. v. Fred Carter (Appeal) Dates: 1983-1985. Items: About 170. Location: Charleston, W.V. Topic: United Mine Workers activist Fred Carter's appeal of his conviction for receiving fees from Black Lung claimants without approval. The appeal contended harassment of Carter as the motivation for the original trial. Conviction was reversed in 1985.

Box 57-58

Box 57

Box 58

Greene County, Ala., Voting Fraud Cases Dates: 1985-1986. Items: About 160. Location: Greene County, Ala. Topic: Cases brought by the U.S. government against Bessie Jones Underwood, Spiver Gordon, and Frederick Douglas Daniels for alleged voting fraud consisting of altering absentee ballots. Defense contended that charges were an attempt to harass African-American voters.

Box 58

State of N.C. v. Cozelle Mills Wilson Dates: 1985-1986. Items: About 130. Location: Kinston, N.C. Topic: Voter registration illegalities.

Box 59

Tom Turnipseed v. South Carolina Public Service Commission Dates: 1983-1984. Items: About 85. Location: Columbia, S.C. Topic: Tom Turnipseed, former S.C. state senator, sued the South Carolina Public Service Commission for utilities rate-fixing scheme.

Box 60

Garrett et al. v. Worthen et al. Dates: 1985-1986. Items: About 45. Location: Oklahoma. Topic: Suit alleging unreasonable and excessive deadly force used by police in the death of James Garrett.

Box 61

Gerald Walter Jones and Willie Kate Jones Case Dates: 1985-1986. Items: 2. Location: Buncombe Co., N.C. Topic: Drug manufacturing and trafficking charges.

Box 62

U.S.A. v. Robert R. Woods (Appeal) Dates: 1986. Items: About 70. Location: Columbia, S.C. Topic: Appeal of decision in case against Rev. Woods for mail fraud, forgery, and false claims in relation to a lunch program administered by him at his church's day care center. Appeal based on claim of ineffective assistance of counsel.

Common Cause of California v. Board of Supervisors of County of Los Angeles Dates: 1986. Items: 5. Location: Los Angeles, circa Topic: Voter discrimination case. Common Cause alleged voter registration procedures set up to discourage low income and nonwhite voters from registering.

Box 63-64

Box 63

Box 64

Gwendolyn Patton Ballot Access Suit Dates: 1992-1993 Items: About 115 items. Location: Alabama. Topic: Suit to place United States Senate candidate Gwendolyn Patton on the ballot. Contains material on the Working Group on Electoral Democracy, for which Patton was the Southern Coordinator.

Box 65

Halifax County, Ga., Schoolboard Suit Dates: 1989 Items: About 50 items. Location: Halifax County, Ga. Topic: Suit challenging how school board was elected.

Box 66

Gulf Coast Tenant Leadership Project Suits Dates: 1985. Items: About 60. Location: St. Charles Parish, La.Topic: Defense of individuals against whom the state of Mississippi brought suits for obstructing a roadway in their protests against poor conditions in St. Charles Parish housing projects. See also Subseries 2.13 (Citizens' Participation Project) for additional materials on the Gulf Coast Tenant Leadership organization.

Karen Silkwood v. the Kerr-McGee Corporation et al. Dates: 1978-1979. Items: 4. Location: Oklahoma City, Okla. Topic:Suit against Kerr-McGee Corporation seeking retribution relating to the intentional contamination of Karen Silkwood, a union organizer at the company, with plutonium.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 2.12. Unlitigated Cases and Requests for Aid, 1985-1988, 1991-1994.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 2.13. Related Projects, 1985-1986, 1988-1993.

About 305 items.

Papers relating to the Southern Organizing Committee for Economic Justice (about 95 items, 1985-1986) and the Citizens' Participation Committee (about 265 items, 1988-1993). Includes correspondence, reports, pamphlets and brochures, conference materials, notes and research materials, and newspaper clippings.

Box 71-72

Box 71

Box 72

Related Projects, 1985-1986, 1988-1993

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 3. Child Advocacy Cases, 1987-1994.

About 2900 items.

Records, mostly court documents and case files, maintained by the Southern Justice Institute until its dissolution in 1994 on child advocacy work completed as legal counsel to the National Child Rights Alliance and as part of the legal arm (known as the Legal Action Project) of the National Committee for the Rights of the Child. Also includes administrative files.

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.1. National Child Rights Alliance, 1987-1994.

About 350 items.

Administrative files and court documents and case files pertaining to the Gregory K. case litigated in part by the Alliance.

Box 73-74

Box 73

Box 74

National Child Rights Alliance, 1987-1994

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.1.1. Administrative Files, 1987-1993.

About 140 items.

Correspondence, clippings, background research materials, articles on child abuse, newsletters, and materials on child abuse and child advocacy distributed by related organizations.

Box 73

Administrative Files, 1987-1993

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.1.2. Gregory K. Case, 1992-1994.

About 210 items.

Correspondence, pleadings, briefs, case notes, clippings and press releases for a case involving a Florida boy's "divorce" from his abusive parents.

Box 74

Gregory K. Case, 1992-1994

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.2. National Committee for the Rights of the Child (Legal Action Project), circa 1991-1994.

About 2,555 items.

Administrative files and court documents and case files pertaining to a number of cases litigated or assisted by the Legal Action Project. Includes mostly correspondence, clippings, and legal briefs.

Box 75-83

Box 75

Box 76

Box 77

Box 78

Box 79

Box 80

Box 81

Box 82

Box 83

National Committee for the Rights of the Child (Legal Action Project), circa 1991-1994

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.2.1. Administrative Files, 1991-1994.

About 1630 items.

Correspondence, executive council minutes, membership lists, brochures, conference materials, funding proposals, scattered newsletters, clippings, and other items related to the formation of the Committee and its Legal Action Project, as well as early cases and finances. Includes biographical information on Board members.

Box 75-78

Box 75

Box 76

Box 77

Box 78

Administrative files, 1991-1994

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.2.2. Grissom Custody Suit, 1993-1994.

About 350 items.

Court documents and case files for a Missouri suit in which the Legal Action Project represented three teenagers challenging a court order revoking their mother's custody because she refused to force them to visit their abusive father.

Box 79-80

Box 79

Box 80

Grissom Custody Suit, 1993-1994

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.2.3. DeBoer Custody Suit, 1992-1994.

About 125 items.

Court documents and case files for a Michigan suit in which the Legal Action Project filed an amicus curiae brief arguing for the rights of two-year-old Jessica DeBoer to have her best interests considered in the battle between her biological and adoptive parents.

Box 80

DeBoer Custody Suit, 1992-1994

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.2.4. Thomas Custody Suit, 1993-1994.

About 100 items.

Court documents and case files for a Kansas suit concerning a grandmother's attempt to retain custody of her grandson, who had been abused by his mother. The Legal Action Project filed a brief on behalf of the grandmother.

Box 81

Thomas Custody Suit, 1993-1994

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.2.5. Martinez Custody Suit, 1993-1994.

About 100 items.

Court documents and case files for a New Jersey case in which the Legal Action Project filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of a "psychological mother's" custody rights over those of the biological mother.

Martinez Custody Suit, 1993-1994

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.2.6. Keene Custody Suit, 1989-1994.

About 50 items.

Court documents and case files for a Tennessee case in which the Legal Action Project filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of a child seeking to stay with his grandmother who had raised him instead of living with his biological father.

Box 82

Keene Custody Suit, 1989-1994

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.2.7. Roth Adoption Suit, 1994.

About 50 items.

Court documents and case files for a New Mexico adoption suit in which the Legal Action Project filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of adoptive parents who were facing a challenge to their custody rights by the biological father.

Roth Adoption Suit, 1994

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.2.8. Paternity Suit Challenging Lesbian Mother's Custody, 1994.

About 50 items.

Court documents and case files for a New York suit in which the Legal Action Project filed an amicus curiae brief in support of a lesbian family's right to retain custody of their daughter over the challenge of the child's sperm donor. The National Child Rights Alliance also filed an amicus brief.

Paternity Suit Challenging Lesbian Mother's Custody, 1994

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.2.9. May's Adoption Suit, 1993-1994.

About 50 items.

Court documents and case files for a Florida suit in which the Legal Action Project filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of Kimberly Mays, a teenager suing to stay with the father who had raised her after it was learned she had been switched with another child accidentally at birth in the hospital.

Box 83

May's Adoption Suit, 1993-1994

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.2.10. Klug Custody Case, 1992-1994.

About 50 items.

Court documents and case files for a Michigan suit in which the Legal Action Project litigated on behalf of a mother seeking to regain custody of her teenage son from his abusive father.

Klug Custody Case, 1992-1994

Box 73-83

Box 73

Box 74

Box 75

Box 76

Box 77

Box 78

Box 79

Box 80

Box 81

Box 82

Box 83

Child Advocacy Cases, 1987-1994

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 4. Pictures, Circa 1985-1993.

About 625 items.

Arrangement: by case.

Black-and-white and color snapshots, mostly of clients and organizers involved in the Daufuskie Island, S.C., Keysville, Ga., Screven County, Ga., Robeson County, N.C., and Selma, Ala., suits. Also included are portraits and snapshots of Christic Institute South/Southern Justice Institute staff members, including Lewis Pitts, Gayle Korotkin, and Czerny Brasuell. A number of photographs taken during the Racial Justice Workgroup Visit in 1990 and at the Southern Justice Institute open house held in 1991 also appear.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 1

1985, 1991, 1993, and undated. 12 black-and-white and 13 color photographs. Includes pictures of Lewis Pitts, Gayle Korotkin, Czerny Brasuell, Southern Justice Institute Board member John Hope Franklin, and others. One photo appears from the initial Christic Institute South Board Meeting held at A&T University in Greensboro, N.C., in 1985. Also one photostat and one negative included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 2

1991. 29 black-and-white photographs taken at the Southern Justice Institute Open House. 37 negatives of these and similar photographs included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 3

1990, 1991. 28 color photographs, mostly of cemetery on Daufuskie Island, S.C. Includes photos of Yvonne Wilson. 25 negatives included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 4

1990? 36 black-and-white photographs of individuals involved in the Daufuskie Island suit and of buildings on the Island. Includes photographs of old slave quarters. Negatives for all images included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 5

Undated. 22 color photographs of plaintiffs and others individuals involved in the Daufuskie Island suit, of the ferry on the Island, and of Island scenes.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 6

1989 and undated. 29 color photographs of the Penn Center Heritage Days held in November 1989; 12 color photographs of plaintiffs, and 12 color photographs of victory celebration held at black-owned Driftwood Lounge on Hilton Head Island. 62 negatives of these and similar photographs included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 7

1990, 1991?, and undated. 17 black-and-white photographs (January 1991?) of Daufuskie Island and of individuals involved in the cemetery suit; 4 color photographs of individuals aboard the ferry; and 15 color photographs taken at the Rosa Parks Community Center Meeting in December 1990. 46 negatives of these and similar photographs included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 8

Undated. 18 color photographs of Daufuskie Island cemetery and buildings. 25 negatives of these and similar photographs included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 9

1992 and undated. 32 color photographs taken at Friends of Daufuskie Meeting on Hilton Head Island, at Call Meeting at the Penn Center, in Puerto Rico, and in Trenton, N.C. 10 negatives of these and similar photographs included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 10

1990, 1992. 27 color photographs of Daufuskie Island individuals, the ferry, and the cemetery, and 3 color photographs taken at the Martin Luther King, Jr., Day Celebration on Hilton Head Island, 1992.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 11

1991. 20 black-and-white photographs of individuals attending the 1991 Sea Island Conference. Negatives included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 12

January-February 1991. 16 black-and-white photographs of the Amelia White Cemetery on Daufuskie Island and of individuals involved in the cemetery suit. 24 negatives of these and similar photographs included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 13

1985-1986. 34 color photographs of members of the Gulf Coast Tenants' Association of St. Charles Parish, La., and of poorly maintained houses in the area. 49 negatives of these and similar photographs included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 14

1982 and undated. 5 color photographs of Holmes Count, Miss., organizers and residents. Photographs of several activist nuns in Lexington, Miss., included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 15

Undated. 7 black-and-white photographs and 3 color photographs of Keysville, Ga., organizers and Governor Campbell. 6 contact sheets and 39 negatives of these and similar photographs included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 16

Undated. 40 color photographs of Keysville, Ga., organizers and residents.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 17

Undated. 19 black-and-white and 2 color photographs of Keysville organizers and residents. 59 negatives of these and similar photographs included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 18

1990 and undated. 5 color photographs of vigil held by Women's International League for Peace and Freedom in Chapel Hill for defendants in Robeson County, N.C., case; 4 color photographs of Robeson County residents; 1 color photograph from Robeson County Conference, December 1990; and 5 black-and-white photographs of Eddie Hatcher and Timothy Jacobs, Lewis Pitts, Gayle Korotkin, and others. Also 1 color photograph of Lewis Pitts in courtroom and 2 black-and-white photographs of bullet-shattered windshield of Eddie Hatcher's car. Negatives for 3 of these photographs included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 19

1990-1991. 41 color photographs of organizational meetings and organizers in Screven County, Ga. 59 negatives of these and similar photographs included.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 20

Undated. 56 color and 2 black-and-white photographs of organizers in Selma, Ala.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 21

1982. 19 color photographs of federal grand jury convened in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 22

circa 1988-1989. 9 color photographs of individuals participating in and attending hearings in Washington, D.C., concerning the harassment of black elected officials. Hearings were sponsored by the N.C. Council of Churches.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 23

Undated. 11 black-and-white photographs and 4 contact sheets of prints taken at the christening of the Plowshares Center, where the Christic Institute South was housed between 1986-1990.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 24

1992. 14 color photographs taken on a trip to Puerto Rico to attend a meeting of the Racial Working Group of the National Council of Churches.

Image Folder P-4704/Folder 25

Undated. 13 unidentified color photographs and 12 unidentified negatives.

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