An outline of the report by the FAMU Faculty Administration Committee addresses the crisis following MLK’s assassination and the resulting student revolts. The committee highlights President Gore's efforts to seek constructive change while maintaining university operations and preserving FAMU's reputation amidst the closure.
A letter from the third President of Tuskegee University, Dr. Frederick D. Patterson, confirming that Charles G. Gomillion will receive an increase in salary and continue his work at Tuskegee University.
Genealogies based on the Transmit Confirmation Report and related correspondence, designed to track the descendants of the 1923 Rosewood massacre victims. It outlines the process of verifying familial connections to ensure the accurate identification of descendants for historical recognition and potential compensation.
Sifuentes shows multiple generations of a family, painted in a geometric style. Sifuentes borrows visual symbols from his teacher, Dr. Biggers, including the tortoise (longevity) and the serpent (danger and rebirth). Guardian ancestors are represented by figures with angel wings.
This document features seven detailed family trees of families deeply connected to the 1923 Rosewood massacre in an attempt to trace lineage, preserve historical value, and validate claims for compensation. They provide vital links to history to ensure descendants are recognized and connected to their heritage and the events of Rosewood.
Texas Southern University students commissioned Biggers to paint this mural in the cafeteria of the student center. Composed of several distinct but interrelated images, Family Unity features several Afrocentric motifs that Biggers developed, including sacred geometry (checkerboards and spirals), shotgun houses, and husband-and-wife pairs. At the center is what Biggers called the “morning star,” which shows a couple embracing with their form suggesting a womb.
A 1969 newspaper clipping from the St. Petersburg Times describes an interaction between Florida A&M President Dr. Benjamin L. Perry and the State Board of Regents. Perry complained that “FAMU is ‘bursting at the seams’ because of a student housing storage,” a problem the institution has recurringly faced in recent years.
The FAMU Alumni News reported on the Summer 1971 Commencement, which some high-profile figures attended. Names include Senior Ebony Editor Lerone Bennett (commencement speaker, not pictured), Florida House Rep. Gwendolyn Cherry, Secretary of the Florida State Department of Community Affairs M. Athalie Range, and Ray Charles (absent from the event).
A timeless piece from the Tallahassee Democrat on a woman who essentially grew up with Florida A&M University. Born a year after the institution’s founding, 1888, Charlotte V. A. Gavin offers historical insight into both the early days of FAMU and the growth of Tallahassee’s community through integration.
A product made from muscadine grapes grown at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University's very own vineyard. Muscadine grapes are a unique variety native to the southeastern United States, known for their thick skins and sweet, musky flavor.
A beverage product made from muscadine berries grown at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University. Muscadine berries are a type of grape native to the southeastern United States.
When 20-year-old Genita Ekpenyong’s father was murdered in Nigeria’s Biafran conflict, B. L. Perry (who met her father when he was a guest professor in Nigeria) temporarily became her guardian so she could complete her education. Despite this, Ekpenyong was itching to return to Nigeria because the violence in the U.S. was too much for her to bear.
In the early 1970s, President Dr. Benjamin Perry announced a private funding campaign for the university after asserting that the State Board of Education was withholding FAMU’s fair share of funds, granting them only 3.1% of the budget from the Board of Regents and the State Legislature. Then-Attorney General Bob Shervin supported his statements.
In mid-November 1963, a letter was sent detailing updates to the student handbook, outlining behavioral expectations and consequences. It was followed by another letter informing students that those involved in a county court conviction would face strict probation for the remainder of the trimester, with severe academic and disciplinary penalties.
Journalist Brad Silliman, writing for the Tallahassee Democrat, discusses a plan created by students at Florida A&M University to tour the state of Florida on a telegram and letter campaign to the Florida Congress. This protest was in response to a suggestion by two state senators to merge the two institutions to save costs.
In the late 1960s to mid-1970s, threats of Florida A&M being phased out like other small, predominantly Black institutions or merged with Florida State University (a predominantly white institution) were recurrent. However, university President Benjamin L. Perry held his ground, threatening legal action against the Florida State University System.
This article provides a more nuanced position Benjamin L. Perry held on merging with Florida State University. While he was adamant about maintaining Florida A&M’s autonomy, Perry made sure to say that the institution “offers opportunities for blacks and whites” as justification for that stance.
In 1960, following a civil riot, FAMU released a statement addressing student demonstrations. The university faced criticism for suspending two students and placing 30 on strict probation, asserting that the disciplinary actions were essential to restoring order and upholding its standards.
A red and black button with a picture of Fannie Lou Hamer and her name in print. Ms. Hamer was a renowned leader in Mississippi during the Civil Rights Movement. She worked with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) to organize Freedom Summer in 1964 and was also vice-chair of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party.
A map of the Farish Street Historic District with markers for different land uses: streets, railroads, utility corridors, hydrography, residential, government/institutional, industrial, commercial, and open space.
Aurelia Norris Young was a prominent Civil Rights activist and professor of music at Jackson State College and Tougaloo College. She gave this speech on the history of the Farish Street Historic District on April 9, 1983, at the Smith Robertson Neighborhood Folklife Festival, which honored the history and legacy of the district.
Charles Henry Alston was a Harlem Renaissance painter, sculptor, illustrator, muralist, and teacher. Farm Boy is a portrait of a young Black boy holding a hat and tool on a farm. Alston photographed Black Southern life in North Carolina when he visited rural and farm sites with a Farm Security Administration inspector.
This watercolor painting by Joseph A. Moran features a grazing cow in the foreground and an outhouse and farmhouse in the background. Dr. Biggers encouraged students to create based on what they saw, which may have been this rural scene for this artist.
John Woodrow Wilson was a famous painter known for his creative portraits and stylistic approach to social justice. Father and Child is a black-and-white print of a seemingly nude father holding his equally nude son. The piece embodies the intimacy between parent and child.
Orrin Evans of The Bulletin staff wrote this piece on three generations of pastors in the local community, one of them being former Florida A&M University President Rev. William H. Gray, Jr. William H. Gray, Jr. was the pastor of one of the largest Baptist congregations in Philadelphia and his son, William H. Gray, III was a minister.
A newspaper article from The New Jersey Afro-American about Judge Theodore Appleby barring the testimony of an FBI agent and senator. Chief defense attorney William Kunstler wanted to use the testimony to establish a police conspiracy against Black militants in the trial of Assata Shakur (JoAnne Chesimard) for the 1973 killing of a state trooper.
A memo from the International Committee to Free Dhoruba Moore (Dhoruba Bin Wahad a/k/a Richard Moore) asking for members to write to the Congressional Black Caucus to demand a full-scale investigation after evidence of the FBI's Cointelpro program was exposed in court during hearings that were the result of motions filed by Moore.
Jewell Woodard Simon was an internationally acclaimed artist, teacher, and poet from Houston, TX. February Lace is an atmospheric watercolor of a park in late winter. The scene includes patches of dried and lush grass, trees with red and purple leaves, and a bridge. Simon used the trees in the foreground to create a sense of depth.
A newspaper article from The Home News about the murder trial of Assata Shakur (JoAnne Chesimard) for the 1973 killing of a state trooper. She will remain in solitary confinement at least until U.S. District Court Judge George Barlow returns from vacation at the end of August to take action on the motion to move her to women's general population.
