Papers of Vel Phillips, Wisconsin civil rights pioneer, lawyer, Milwaukee alder, Juvenile Court justice, and Secretary of State. The papers, 1951-2009, are divided into 11 series: RADIO SCRIPTS, 1966-1967; TEACHING, 1968-1993; CORRESPONDENCE, 1957-2009; COMMON COUNCIL, 1958-1971; DEMOCRATIC PARTY, 1958-1984; JUDICIAL, 1971-1977; SECRETARY OF STATE, 1975-1991; ORGANIZATIONS, 1946-2009; BIOGRAPHICAL, 1946-2009; SPEECHES, 1957-2009; and AUDIO RECORDINGS, 1966-1979.
The RADIO SCRIPTS series includes scripts for Phillips' weekly radio segment "Tell Vel," which aired on WAWA. These are from the years 1966 and 1967, and include multi-part segments on fair housing, the Parents Action Committee for Education (PACE) Busing project, Adam Clayton Powell and the controversy surrounding his removal from the House of Representatives, and the Greenleigh Report on poverty in Milwaukee. Most scripts include handwritten revisions by Phillips.
The TEACHING series documents classes taught by Phillips at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Carroll University, and Marquette University. The greatest number of classes pertained to African Americans and politics.
The CORRESPONDENCE series includes a combination of personal and professional correspondence, arranged chronologically. Researchers can find here the correspondence Phillips received both for and against her open housing ordinance. The correspondence opposed to open housing has been labeled "opposition mail"; in Phillips' original organization, these letters were bundled together and called “crank mail.” Phillips included materials one might consider hate mail, letters that articulated objections to specifics of the ordinance, and occasionally letters of uncertain relationship to the open housing topic. This label as "opposition mail" is not meant to minimize the racist nature of some of the correspondence, but rather to provide a generic term for the inclusion of all letters opposed to fair housing. This better reflects the way Phillips had organized the letters prior to accessioning.
The COMMON COUNCIL series documents Phillips' tenure as an alder on the Milwaukee Common Council. This series begins with a subseries devoted to the issue of open housing, and then proceeds chronologically throughout her career as an alder.
The DEMOCRATIC PARTY series includes material on Phillips' tenure as national committeewoman for the Democratic Party, her work with the state-level party organization, and some ongoing correspondence after she was less active with the party. It also includes material on her diplomatic trips to Africa and Germany in the 1960s.
The JUDICIAL series includes some material on Phillips' tenure as a juvenile court judge. No specifics of cases before the court are present, but researchers will find a draft copy of her installation ceremony speech, research on juvenile delinquency and legislative bills pertaining to children, a small run of correspondence with redacted names, and some documents from her re-election campaign.
The SECRETARY OF STATE series includes material from Phillips' tenure as Secretary of State. Highlights include her work on the Wisconsin Constitution duplication project and revising the lobby law, as well as a subseries about the State Ethics Board investigation into her honoraria for speaking events.
The ORGANIZATIONAL series includes materials from organizations in which Phillips participated. Many organizations are present here, but those with particularly strong representation include ACHOICE; Community Brainstorming Conference; Community Relations-Social Development Commission; several local branches of the NAACP; The Links Incorporated; the Milwaukee Ethnic Council; "Us"/Girl Friends Inc.; Wisconsin Conservatory of Music; and the YWCA of Greater Milwaukee.
The BIOGRAPHICAL series includes material about personal aspects of Phillips' life, including her family, awards she received, conferences she attended outside of specific political offices, and her acting roles.
The SPEECHES series includes material related to speeches Phillips gave throughout her life. These are arranged chronologically, and include combinations of scripts, handwritten notes, invitations, and flyers; although most speeches do not have all types of materials present.
The AUDIO RECORDINGS series includes audio material from throughout Phillips' life, including interviews and recordings of radio programs and speeches. Highlights include several recordings of her "Tell Vel" radio address (1749A/2, 5, 7, 9-11), an interview with Horace Sheffield (1749A/23), and a recording of Vel Phillips, Father James Groppi, and Dick Gregory speaking at St. Mark AME Church in September 1967 (1749A/22).
