Items

• Interview: Bethel, Leonard, 2021

  Dr. Leonard Bethel is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Africana Studies at Rutgers. He was born in 1939 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In the interview, he describes growing up in the predominantly Black neighborhood of West Philadelphia, being involved in the Fellowship House, through which he became exposed to the Civil Rights Movement, and working at La Citadelle Camp, operated by activist and educator Layle Lane. After attending Lincoln University for his undergraduate degree, he earned a Master of Divinity at Johnson C. Smith University, during which time he was active in desegregation efforts in North Carolina. He earned a Master of Arts in Theology at New Brunswick Theological Seminary (NBTS) and received a doctorate at the Rutgers Graduate School of Education. He became an ordained Presbyterian minister in 1964. After coming to Rutgers in 1969, he worked to establish the Department of Africana Studies, chaired the department for fifteen years, and served as a faculty member for forty-two years. Through his ministry, he became involved in the anti-apartheid movement, as well as in community service organizations and initiatives. A long-time resident of Plainfield, he served as the pastor at Bethel Presbyterian Church. He is the author of numerous books and articles including Educating African Leaders: Missionism in America and La Citadelle: Layle Lane and Social Activism in 20th Century America.
• Interview: Clarke, Cheryl, 2012

  Cheryl Clarke is a black lesbian feminist whose poetry, editorial work, and career at Rutgers have had a significant impact on black, lesbian, and women’s communities. She is the author of four collections of poetry, often centered around themes of black women’s issues and lesbian issues. She served as an editor of the lesbian publication Conditions for nine years and began working at Rutgers University in 1970. At Rutgers, she served as the founding Director of Diverse Community Affairs and Lesbian/Gay Concerns, which became the Office of Social Justice Education and LGBT Communities in 2004. She was the Dean of Students of Livingston Campus between 2009-2013 and retired from Rutgers in 2013 after 41 years of service. In this interview, Clarke discusses her upbringing in Washington, D.C. during the Civil Rights Movement, her passion for writing, and the role of feminism. Clarke proposes the idea that we, as a society, must be in the “project of transformation” to “create a new humanity” as we reconcile gender and race issues. --- See also an additional interview with Cheryl Clarke, recorded in 2018 by the Rutgers Oral History Archives.
• Interview: Donaldson, Vickie, 1991

  Vickie Donaldson was the most prominent woman in the Black Organization of Students (BOS) and played an instrumental role in the organizaing activities surrounding the 1969 takeover of Conklin Hall. She grew up in Florida and moved with her mother in Newark in 1967. At Rutgers, she joined the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) and the campus NAACP chapter before gravitating to the BOS. She graduated from Rutgers-Newark College of Art and Sciences (NCAS) in 1972 with a degree in black studies and sociology. In 1974 she went on to obtain a graduate degree in political theory. She received her law degree from Rutgers in 1982. Since then, Vickie has served as the General Counsel to the Board of Education in Newark, as the town prosecutor in Orange, New Jersey, and is now practicing law in Newark.
• Interview: Harris, David, 2012

  David Harris was interviewed as part of the City of New Brunswick Redevelopment Oral Histories project at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy circa 2012 (the exact date of the interview is unknown). This research project spanned from 2009 to 2016 and resulted in the publication of the book New Brunswick, New Jersey: The Decline and Revitalization of Urban America (Rutgers University Press, 2016). The video of Mr. Harris's interview and the accompanying transcript are available in digital format. In the early 1960s, David Harris lived in South River, near New Brunswick, and studied part time at Rutgers. Harris explains that New Brunswick, known as “Hub City,” used to be the center of African American culture in the region. In 1965, he began working in New Brunswick for the Middlesex County Economic Opportunities Corporation. Harris explores conflicts between the needs of the community and redevelopment agencies led by Johnson & Johnson, and in this context, discusses the demolition of the Memorial Homes housing project. Having served on the board of the New Brunswick Development Corporation (Devco) for a short time, Harris critiques the lack of genuine input from the public. He asserts that Devco wanted to diminish the African American presence in the business district. Consequently, the welfare office, YMCA and YWCA were removed from downtown. Harris reveals the motivations that led to building the current New Brunswick high school on the outskirts of town. He touches upon the Hyatt Hotel, Hiram Market, leaders in redevelopment such as John Lynch and John Heldrich and the roles of Rutgers, the hospitals and arts venues in urban renewal. Finally, Harris alludes to “unfinished business” and what still needs to be accomplished in the community.
• Interview: Harris, Donald, 2013

  Donald Harris was born in New York, New York in 1940. He attended Rutgers College and graduated in 1963 with majors in English and Physical Education. At Rutgers, Harris was a member of the Air Force ROTC and also played football and lacrosse. He worked as a Civil Rights activist during his student days at Rutgers and, later, as a fieldworker for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) in Southwest Georgia in the early 1960s. In August 1963, he was arrested in Americus, Georgia, while trying to register African-American voters. Harris and two others were charged with insurrection, a capital offense in Georgia. The case stirred support on the Rutgers campus and across New Jersey in the Fall of 1963. Harris was released in November after a federal court declared the law under which he was charged to be unconstitutional. He went on to pursue graduate work at the City University of New York, Harvard Law School, and Columbia University. He worked for Philip Morris International Management and retired as the Vice President of Public Affairs and Communications.
• Interview: Mitchell, Bryant, 2015

  Part 1 - Bryant Mitchell was born on July 13, 1947, in Hampton, Virginia. An art history major, he graduated from Rutgers College in 1969. While at Rutgers, he was named most valuable player for the 1968 football season. He is a 1992 Rutgers Football Hall of Fame inductee. During Mr. Mitchell's first interview, he recalls growing up in Virginia, an early exposure to Civil Rights activism by way of his father, Henry Bryant Mitchell, and his time at Rutgers. He joined the 25th Infantry Division in 1969. Part 2 - Mr. Mitchell served in the 25th Infantry Division from September 1969 to September 1971 as a combat MP. He was stationed at Cu Chi before being assigned to Dau Tieng. After leaving the military, Mr. Mitchell entered the University of Virginia Law School and graduated in 1975. Currently, Mr. Mitchell works in real estate, owning his own brokerage in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.
• Interview: Ringgold, Faith, 2008

  Faith Ringgold began her artistic career more than fifty years ago as a painter. Today, she is best known for her painted story quilts – art that combines painting, quilted fabric and storytelling. She has exhibited in major museums in the USA, Europe, South America, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. She is in the permanent collection of many museums including the Studio Museum in Harlem, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and The Museum of Modern Art. Her first book, Tar Beach was a Caldecott Honor Book and winner of the Coretta Scott King Award for Illustration, among numerous other honors. She has written and illustrated eleven children’s books. She has received more than seventy-five awards, fellowships, citations and honors, including the Solomon R. Guggenheim Fellowship for painting, two National Endowment for the Arts Awards and seventeen honorary doctorates, one of which is from her alma mater The City College of New York. In this interview Ringgold begins with her childhood in Harlem, New York City, during the 1930s and the influences that impacted her life. She then addresses her experience during the Harlem Renaissance and struggles as a Black female artist, then moves on to her social activism within her art and the development of her mature style.
• Interview: Van Blake, Donald, 2007

  Donald Van Blake was born in Plainfield, New Jersey, and during the Second World War served in the "Red Ball Express" as a truck driver. After the war, he was active in the Civil Rights Movement and went on to have a career in transportation.