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IWA Civil Rights & Community Organizing Collections: Digital Resources

About the Digital Resources Page

This page lists the collections for each of the Guide's topics that include material in the Iowa Digital Library. You will find a link to and brief description of the IDL content for each collection, as well as a link to the collection's finding aid. 

 

African American Life

BURLESON, JANE (1928- )

Teacher’s aide, packinghouse worker, and union activist who was the first woman and the first African American elected to the Fort Dodge City Council.

 

COOPER, CECILE (1900-1997)

Civil rights worker in Davenport.

 

GAINES, BLANCA VASQUEZ (1918- )

Puerto Rican woman who served in the Women’s Army Corps during World War II. She married Harold Gaines of Buxton, a predominately African-American coal mining town, and their daughter, Angela, was born in 1953. The papers include the unpublished memoir of Reuben Gaines.

 

GRIFFIN, EDNA (1909-2000)

Civil rights activist, later known as the “Rosa Parks of Iowa.”

 

HARPER, VIRGINIA (1929-1997)

One of five African American women who integrated Currier Hall at the University of Iowa in 1946. Former president of the Fort Madison Chapter of the NAACP.

 

IOWA FEDERATION OF COLORED WOMEN’S CLUBS

Founded by the Iowa Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs in 1919 to house African American female students at the University of Iowa.

 

MORRIS, ARLENE ROBERTS (1926-)

Clinical psychologist and University of Iowa alumna; member from 1960 to 1967 of the Des Moines Know Your Neighbor panel, a multiracial and multi-faith group of women organized to promote tolerance.

NOBLE PHOTOGRAPH COLLECTION 

Postcards and photographs of various Iowa subjects. Printed Materials include items published by the African American printer, W.E. Patten, of Des Moines, Iowa, as well as an anniversary program for the St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church, 1872-1945. 

 

SMITH, MARY LOUISE

The first woman to chair the Republican National Committee, serving from 1974 to 1977. Co-founder of the Louise Noun-Mary Louise Smith Iowa Women's Archives. US Commission on Civil Rights series includes a clipping file on African Americans, as well as material on affirmative action, busing, the feminization of poverty, voting rights, etc.

 

WALLS, ESTHER J. (1926- )

Mason City, Iowa native and New York-based librarian and administrator. She was the first African American female student at the University of Iowa elected to Phi Beta Kappa.

  • IDL material includes photographs, an interview, letters, newspaper clippings, and other documents.
  • Finding aid 

 

WOOD, MARY ELIZABETH (1902-1998)

Social worker and administrator who became the first African American woman in the United States to be named executive director of a greater metropolitan YWCA in 1957.

 

YWCA OF GREATER DES MOINES

Local chapter affiliated with the National YWCA in 1896. Includes records of the Blue Triangle, the chapter's African American branch from 1919-1947. 

 

Latinx Rights

DE PLASENCIA, ADELAITA “ILA” RODRIGUEZ (1927- )

The first president of the women’s LULAC Council #306 in Des Moines, Iowa, served on state commissions and advocated for civil rights for Iowa’s Latino community.

 

GUZMAN, IRENE AND JOSE (1943- )

Photographs and slides pertaining to the Guzman's role in the Migrant Action Program in Mason City, Iowa.

 

LEAGUE OF UNITED LATIN AMERICAN CITIZENS (LULUC) COUNCIL 10 (DAVENPORT, IOWA)

The members of Davenport LULAC Council 10 engaged in a wide range of social and political activities including annual fiestas, civil rights, and fair housing

 

THE LULAC COUNCILS #306 AND #308 (DES MOINES, IOWA)

The League of United Latin American Citizens Councils #306 and #308 provided opportunities for educational, social, and civil rights advancement for Latinos in the area through scholarships, social events, and political activism.

 

MUSCATINE MIGRANT COMMITTEE (MMC)

A migrant agency that advocated for agricultural laborers employed temporarily on eastern Iowa farms.

 

O’CONNER, REV. WILLIAM T. (1922-1984)

Roman Catholic priest and labor rights advocate who taught at St. Ambrose College, Davenport, Iowa. O’Connor’s career as a professor and as a priest was marked by his dedication to the cause of racial and social justice. 

 

RODRIGUEZ, ERNEST (1928- )

Davenport civil rights and Chicano activist, born in the predominantly Mexican settlement of Holy City in Bettendorf, Iowa.

  • IDL material includes broadcast scripts, newspaper clippings, biographical documents, and photographs.
  • Finding aid 

 

SANDAGE, SHIRLEY M. (1927-2012)

Mason City, Iowa-born civil rights activist, United States field representative for the Christian Children's Fund, and director of program development for the National Organization on Disability.

 

TERRONEZ, MARY (1918-2009)

Davenport area community activist and leader in the city’s Mexican American community.

  • IDL material includes biographical files, photographs, correspondence, and other selected material.
  • Finding aid 

LGBTQ Rights

BARCELO, NANCY “RUSTY” (1946- )

Activist and administrator at the University of Iowa whose papers provide insight into Latino life and culture in Iowa and across the Midwest.

 

CATALANO, TESS (1959-1999)

Singer, composer, writer and human rights activist who was active in organizations such as the Women's Resource and Action Center (WRAC) and Common Lives/Lesbian Lives that supported feminists and lesbians.

 

MCCORMICK, DALE (1947-)

Carpenter and activist for women in non-traditional jobs.

 

NOUN, LOUISE (1908-2002)

Des Moines, Iowa social activist, art collector, author, and co-founder of the Louise Noun-Mary Louise Smith Iowa Women’s Archives. Karen Johnson, Ruth Scharnau, and Sarah Hanley's interviews include discussion of gay rights.

 

WOMEN’S RESOURCE AND ACTION CENTER (WRAC)

Women's center established in 1970 to serve the university and community. Relevant material includes records related to the Lesbian Alliance, Better Homes and Dykes, and the University of Iowa lesbian, gay, and bisexual staff and faculty association.

Racism and Anti-Racism

MORRIS, ARLENE (1926- )

Clinical psychologist and University of Iowa alumna who was a member of the Des Moines Know Your Neighbor panel, a group of thirteen women of different races, religions, and beliefs, that pledged to “seek out and fight--even in themselves--the prejudice that destroys brotherhood." Served on the Iowa Advisory Committee of the United States Civil Rights Commission. 

 

O’CONNOR, REV. WILLIAM T. (1922-1984)

Roman Catholic priest and labor rights advocate who taught at St. Ambrose College, Davenport, Iowa. The collection includes over forty consecutive bulletins, authored by O'Connor, on the subject of racial  injustice in Iowa in 1963.  

 

WOMEN AGAINST RACISM COMMITTEE (IOWA CITY, IOWA)

A multi-ethnic group founded in 1981 by women from the University of Iowa in order to confront racism in the women’s movement and challenge the effects of internalized racism.

 

WOMEN’S RESOURCE AND ACTION CENTER (WRAC)

University of Iowa organization founded in the 1970s to provide greater equity to women and other marginalized communities. WRAC has offered programming, workshops, and other resources on racism and anti-racism.

 

  • Last Updated: Jun 2, 2025 10:16 AM
  • URL: https://guides.lib.uiowa.edu/civil-rights-and-community-organizing
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