Research Guides: Native Heritage Month: Manuscript Collections from SCRC

Recommended Collections from Syracuse University Special Collections Research Center

Browse this selection of titles and manuscript collections recommended by staff in the Syracuse University Special Collections Research Center. For more information on visiting SCRC, see their website and arrange a visit.

Special Collections Research Center
Located on the 6th floor of Bird Library, the Special Collections Research Center (SCRC) advances scholarship and learning by collecting, preserving and providing access to rare books, manuscripts and other primary source materials. SCRC's collections span time and format, from cuneiform tablets to born digital media, and document the history of Syracuse University and our global society through printed materials, photographs, artworks, audio and moving image recordings, University records, and more. Collection areas include activism and social reform, architecture and design, popular culture, photography, and the history of recorded sound.
American Indian Movement (AIM) Collection
The American Indian Movement (AIM) Collection contains printed material (newsletters, brochures, fliers, etc.) relating to Native American civil rights. Among the topics represented are the 1973 Wounded Knee Incident and legal actions against Native American activists such as Leonard Peltier.
more...less...
The American Indian Movement was an activist organization founded in 1968 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Initially formed to address systemic issues of poverty and police brutality against Native Americans, it expanded to include anti-imperialism, anti-racism, and Native American civil rights. Over the years the group funded, operated, or supported a range of services including employment, health care, culturally-based education, housing, and legal advocacy/support. Notable activities in its early days included participating in the occupation of Alcatraz (1969-1971), the Trail of Broken Treaties march (1972), and the 71-day occupation of Wounded Knee in 1973.

AIM also founded a number of more specialized groups, including the International Indian Treaty Council (IITC) the American Indian Opportunities and Industrialization Center, AIM Street Medics, the American Opportunities and Industrialization Center, the Tokama Institute, Women of All Red Nations (WARN), and a number of "survival schools" focused on reclaiming control over education.

The group split in 1996. The AIM Grand Governing Council (AIMGGC) is based in Minneapolis and still led by founders; while the AIM-International Confederation of Autonomous Chapters is based in Denver, Colorado.
Native American Leaders Prints Collection
The Native American Leaders Prints Collection consists of hand-colored engravings of Native American leaders Joseph Brant (Thayendanegea) and Red Jacket (Sagoyewatha).
more...less...
Red Jacket, also known as Otetiani and Sagoyewatha (1750-1830) was a leader of the Seneca in what is now western New York. The Seneca were British allies during the American Revolution. Red Jacket was known as a skillfull and compelling orator (see for example his speech on "Religion for the White Man and the Red") and a advocate for the rights of his people.

Joseph Brant, or Thayendanegea (1743-1807), was a Mohawk military and political leader in what is now the state of New York. He and his sister Molly were close allies of Sir William Johnson, British Major-General and Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the region. Under the British Brant held several administrative positions, and during the American Revolution he led forces loyal to King George III against the rebels.

Haudenosaunee by Toba Tucker
Call Number: E99.O58 T83 1999
ISBN: 0815605935
Publication Date: 1999-06-30
Sisters in Spirit by Sally Roesch Wagner; John Fadden (Illustrator)
Call Number: HQ1410 .W35 2001
ISBN: 9781570671210
Publication Date: 2001-09-05