This collection is divided into two series, the ANN BAXANDALL KROOTH PAPERS and the RICHARD KROOTH PAPERS. The ANN BAXANDALL KROOTH PAPERS document the Free University of Madison, Wisconsin, during the period 1966-1968.
The Free University material consists of only two folders, but this collection contains remarkably complete documentation of the organization from 1966-1968. A lengthy paper by Ann Baxandall Krooth describes the intellectual underpinnings of the Free University, and contextualizes the organization within a larger cultural movement. The organization's constitution sets out the group's framework and operations. Newspaper clippings describe the group's genesis and report on its activities. Course schedules describe the courses being offered, the instructor's names, and sometimes a very brief description of their background. Recruitment materials and blank instructor feedback forms illustrate the group's attitude toward its mission. Finally, a handful of materials related to other free universities and similar organizations provide context and comparison.
The RICHARD KROOTH PAPERS document various aspects of the civil rights movement from 1955 to 1968, with the bulk of the documents created in 1963-1964. Note that while these documents were collected or created by Richard Krooth during his employment at the ADL, they do not reflect the activities of the ADL per se. Rather, they document events unfolding in the Southeastern United States during 1963-1964 from the perspective of a civil rights worker from the North. A large percentage of these materials are newspaper clippings, primarily from 1963, and culled from both local (Southeastern) and national newspapers. There are reports, pamphlets, brochures, flyers, manuals, fact sheets, and press releases from various sources: major and minor news media outlets, individuals, various civil rights organizations, and the right wing opposition. A smaller portion of the material is the work product of either Richard Krooth or others at the ADL; this material includes handwritten notes, lists, manuals, reports, transcripts for public service announcement radio spots, internal ADL memoranda, and correspondence. The Richard Krooth papers consist of the following subseries: Community Organizing, Desegregation, Discrimination, Events, Labor and Economic Base, Law, Organizational Tactics, Right Wing Opposition Groups, and Suffrage.
Community Organizing contains manuals, reports, fact sheets, bibliographies, handwritten notes, and a few memoranda. These materials document the efforts of groups such as the ADL and OASIS (Organizations Assisting Schools in September) to foster the creation of grassroots civil rights organizations in support of pending desegregation. Most materials are targeted at individual citizens interested in forming such grassroots organizations, but there are a few documents concerning the creation of the City of Minneapolis Commission on Human Relations. The ADL's perspective is documented in one of the few pieces in this collection that is directly attributable to Richard Krooth, “The Creations and Functions of a Bi-Racial Committee.” There is also a lengthy (100+ page) manual produced by HOPE, a non-profit group advocating for the continuation of schools during desegregation; the manual was co-sponsored by the ADL and the Southern Regional Council. The few pieces of correspondence and memoranda all relate to Project Friendship in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Desegregation contains a large amount of materials on school desegregation in Alabama, Georgia, and Tennessee, and a small amount of materials on the desegregation of public facilities in Birmingham and Atlanta (circa 1963-1964). This series consists of a wide variety of materials, including memos, correspondence, reports, newspaper clippings, press releases, and transcripts of radio and television public service announcements. Particularly well-documented are the preparations made in the Chattanooga and Atlanta communities for public school integration.
Discrimination documents discrimination in housing and religion, as well as specific events stemming from discrimination such as the Birmingham bombings. Alabama governor George Wallace is covered in several newspaper articles, as is the fair housing movement. The series contains newspaper clippings, brochures and programs from conferences and workshops, and a few memoranda. The bulk of the materials are from September-October 1963, but there are a few documents from the preceding summer. Although several different issues are covered in this series, no one particular topic is covered in depth.
Events includes newspaper clippings, correspondence, timelines, a report, and handwritten notes. These materials document civil rights abuses, pending legislation, protests, bombings, and other significant events. The newspaper clippings range from May-September 1963, and primarily document events in Birmingham, especially the church bombings. Two timelines of civil rights events, one created by Richard Krooth and one created by the Southern Regional Council, are arranged by state. Handwritten notes from Richard Krooth's timeline are more extensive than the typewritten copy. Although no event is documented in detail, the timelines may prove useful for researchers interested in less well-known incidents. They are limited in date range but extensively cover that short period of time. There is also one small set of handwritten notes regarding elections.
Labor and Economic Base documents opinions about the effects of desegregation on the economy and the relationship of African Americans to industry and labor. This series is mostly newspaper clippings, circa June-October 1963, but there are also a few reports, article reprints, and pamphlets. There are also some promotional materials from the Ecumenical Voluntary Service.
Law contains three subheadings. The first, Civil Rights Legislation, contains primarily newspaper clippings, along with a few pieces of correspondence, conference materials, and one report. The clippings range from May-October 1963 and document the period leading up to the passage of the civil rights act from a national and local perspective. The issue is fairly well documented, from both pro- and anti-civil rights perspectives. Materials on the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights include a comparative analysis of three different versions of the civil rights bill. Constitutional Law and States' Rights is one folder containing an Amicus Brief filed by the ADL and the ACLU in Sherbert v. Verner, a few newspaper clippings, and one copy of the ADL Bulletin, with hand-written notes. Current Law documents the legal process from Krooth's perspective as an attorney, particularly as regards civil liberties, conscientious objection, and the division of governmental powers. Reports describe the rules of evidence, the relationship of power between the branches of government, instructions on how to prepare a legal brief, and an unsigned paper on the legal process. A few clippings document high-profile civil rights litigation. A short run of Civil Liberties Dockets (November 1962-August 1963) were likely used as background materials. The utility of the Current Law heading is compromised somewhat by the absence of any authorship.
Organizational Tactics presents a wide-angle view of civil rights activities between January-October 1963. Newspaper clippings, which comprise the bulk of the series, document protests, marches, and litigation; the desegregation of institutions such as the National Education Association; the activities and organizational structure of groups such as the NAACP; and public reactions to all of the above, both through reporting and editorials. An unsigned report discusses racial attitudes, and some ADL memoranda are marked “Confidential.” Of particular interest is the memo from Benjamin Epstein, National Director of the ADL, describing two group meetings of civil rights and religious leaders that he attended at the White House in June 1963; also in attendance to discuss racial tensions were President Kennedy, Attorney General Robert Kennedy, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Right-Wing Opposition Groups documents the anti-civil rights movement in general, and a few groups in particular, from the multiple perspectives of the news media, civil rights organizations, and the anti-integrationists themselves. Several documents in this series present the ADL's particular perspective on civil rights matters, as in correspondence that analyzes the effects of events upon anti-Semitism. Newspaper clippings from May-August 1963 comprise most of the series, documenting police action, integration, Barry Goldwater and George Wallace. Reports by ADL staffers and other civil rights organizations address black Muslims, the Ku Klux Klan, the radical right, human rights violations in Alabama, and police brutality in Georgia.
Suffrage is a rather unorganized group of documents related to voting rights, voting discrimination, and civil rights in both the United States and abroad. Pamphlets and manuals describe voting rules in Georgia, and handwritten notes break down election possibilities and the division of power in Congress. A few pieces of correspondence indicate that Richard Krooth was consulting on a criminal prosecution in Atlanta. Voting Discrimination is a folder of newspaper clippings from 1959-1963. This appears to have been an official ADL file, because there is an ADL routing slip stapled to each clipping. The articles, however, predate Richard Krooth's tenure at the ADL. There is also a series of newspaper clippings that document several seemingly tangential topics, including South Africa, the livestock industry, federal research, and poverty.
