California State University, Long Beach. Center for Women's Studies ACLU lawsuit records, 1974-1991

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Summary

Creators:
California State University, Long Beach. Center for Women's Studies
Abstract:
The documents contained in this collection range from 1974-1991, focusing on issues facing the Women's Studies Program at California State Univeristy, Long Beach (CSULB) in the 1980s. In 1982, 13 faculty members and three students filed a lawsuit with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) against CSULB, charging the University with violations of the First and Fourth Amendments. Formats of materials include meeting notes, court records, pamphlets, newsletters, press clippings, reports, correspondence, financial and donor information, and education files.
Extent:
0.6 linear feet (2 boxes)
Language:
Materials are in English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], California State University, Long Beach. Center for Women's Studies ACLU lawuit records (Collection 2201). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, University of California, Los Angeles.

Background

Scope and content:

The documents contained in this collection range from 1974-1991, focusing on issues facing the Women's Studies Program at California State Univeristy, Long Beach (CSULB) in the 1980s. The collection contains materials relating to the Women's Studies staff and faculty's legal fight over control of the department, particularly the 1982 lawsuit in which 13 faculty members and three students filed a suit with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) against CSULB, charging the University with violations of the First and Fourth Amendments. Materials include CSULB Women's Studies clippings, "Sandra Hale v. Board of Trustees" materials, financial records, ACLU Foundation Account materials, correspondence, and lawsuit press clippings related to this court case circa 1982. The majority of materials in the collection concern the coordinated attacks by conservative groups against the CSULB Women's Studies Program, in the name of traditional values. These repeated attacks targeted courses related to feminism and lesbian studies, along with their staff and faculty.

Biographical / historical:

California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) was founded in 1949. Its Center for Women's Studies was created in 1972. During the 1980s, with the rising tide of conservative and traditional values, the Women's Studies Program was a constant target of harassment for teaching subjects on feminism and lesbians. These attacks came to a peak in 1982 when the Vice-President of CSULB, with the assistance of other anti-feminist persons and associations of interest, announced they would restructure the Women's Studies Program to include more traditional views of femininity. The restructuring included removing the program director, Dr. Sondra Hale, and Women's Center director, Denise Wheeler. This would be the catalyst for the 1982 lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on behalf of the Women's Studies Program.

Acquisition information:
Transferred from the June L. Mazer Lesbian Archives, 2013.
Custodial history:

This collection was donated to the June L. Mazer Lesbian Archives circa the 1990s by an unknown source.

Processing information:

Processed in Chicano Studies Research Center circa 2013 as part of the June L. Mazer Lesbian Archive project at UCLA. Further physical processing and finding aid completed by Khang Nguyen and Mario A. Gallardo in the Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT), under the supervision of Courtney Dean, 2019.

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Arrangement:

Materials maintain their existing order.

Physical location:
Stored off-site. All requests to access special collections material must be made in advance using the request button located on this page.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for research. All requests to access special collections material must be made in advance using the request button located on this page.

Terms of access:

Property rights to the objects belong to UCLA Library Special Collections. All other rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], California State University, Long Beach. Center for Women's Studies ACLU lawuit records (Collection 2201). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, University of California, Los Angeles.

Location of this collection:
A1713 Charles E. Young Research Library
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575, US
Contact:
(310) 825-4988
AskLSC@library.ucla.edu
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