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Explore stories in Northwest history through highlights from MOHAI’s collections. Search by keyword below or browse the entire online collection by entering the asterisk symbol (*). Filter your search by type of materials.

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780 results for: Activism

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Image of Vote no on 13 poster, 1978
Ephemera

Vote no on 13 poster, 1978

The poster pictured here urged voters in Seattle to reject Initiative 13, which intended to overturn Seattle’s nondiscrimination clauses covering sexual minorities. The movement against the Initiative coalesced into three major local organizations: Seattle Committee Against Thirteen (SCAT), Women Against Thirteen (later Women Acting Together), and Citizens to Retain Fair Employment (CRFE). According to "The SAGE Handbook of Political Geography,…
ID Number:2002.23.8.6.2
Date:1978
Image of Discrimination Response System poster, circa 1985
Ephemera

Discrimination Response System poster, circa 1985

This poster advertises a service in Seattle called the Discrimination Response System which addressed discrimination "within the GBLTQ community such as carding Blacks and Drag Queens in some gay bars, etc." The program was supported by the local chapter of Black and White Men Together (BWMT) a gay, multiracial, multicultural organization founded in 1983. Caption information source: http://www.sgn.org/sgnnews34_25/page7.cfmCaption information source:…
ID Number:2002.23.8.6.3
Date:Circa 1985
Image of Your privacy is at stake! poster, 1978
Ephemera

Your privacy is at stake! poster, 1978

The poster pictured here urged voters in Seattle to reject Initiative 13, which intended to overturn Seattle’s nondiscrimination clauses covering sexual minorities. The movement against the Initiative coalesced into three major local organizations: Seattle Committee Against Thirteen (SCAT), Women Against Thirteen (later Women Acting Together), and Citizens to Retain Fair Employment (CRFE). According to "The SAGE Handbook of Political Geography,…
ID Number:2002.23.8.6.4
Date:1978
Image of Operation Homestead poster, Seattle, May 1991
Ephemera

Operation Homestead poster, Seattle, May 1991

Through the 1980s, low-income housing was steadily disappearing in Seattle. Many older downtown apartment buildings which offered affordable housing were condemned by their landowners as, in many cases, it was more profitable to have an abandoned property then to pay for management and upkeep. The direct-action group Operation Homestead, formed in 1988, occupied abandoned buildings to draw attention to this…
ID Number:2002.23.8.7.1
Date:1991
Image of Youth Advocates poster, Seattle, 1979
Ephemera

Youth Advocates poster, Seattle, 1979

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, problems with teen runaways and drug use in Seattle and King County led to the formation of Youth Advocates. The group advocated setting up counseling and training centers, modernizing the juvenile justice system, and dealing with family problems before young people ran away from home. By 1980, it had become part of United…
ID Number:2002.23.8.7.2
Date:1979
Image of Poster for Indian Fishing Rights demonstration, May 12, 1979
Ephemera

Poster for Indian Fishing Rights demonstration, May 12, 1979

The poster pictured here advertises a demonstration in support of Indian fishing rights, with a march from Westlake Mall to a rally at Waterfront Park in downtown Seattle. Sponsored by the Native American Solidarity Committee, the event featured speeches as well as Indian drumming and a performance by Sioux musician Floyd Westerman (1936-2007). Caption information source: "Demonstration set on Indian…
ID Number:2002.23.8.9.1
Date:1979
Image of Frog's March against War, handmade poster, May 27, 1972
Poster

Frog's March against War, handmade poster, May 27, 1972

After large protests against the Vietnam War in 1970, University of Washington students and other activists continued smaller protests over the next several years as the war became increasingly entrenched. This hand-painted poster advertises one of these demonstrations with a frog carrying a snare drum and "peace" written on his leg. Below is a quote from Henry Thoreau, "If a…
ID Number:2002.23.8.12.6
Date:1972
Image of Women Take Back the Night poster, Seattle, May 9, 1992
Ephemera

Women Take Back the Night poster, Seattle, May 9, 1992

The phrase "Take Back the Night" became popular in the 1970s to draw attention to sexual violence and violence against women, and it become the name of the annual marches held nationally and around the world beginning in the 1970s and continuing today. The march began as a way to protest the violence that women experienced while walking in public…
ID Number:2002.23.8.13.1
Date:1992
Image of Seattle Gray Panthers poster, 1992
Ephemera

Seattle Gray Panthers poster, 1992

The Gray Panthers, founded in 1972 and still active as of 2020, are a series of multi-generational local advocacy networks in the United States which confront ageism and many other social justice issues. During the early years of the 1970s and 1980s, the main issues of the Gray Panthers included forced retirement, ageist stereotypes, cuts to Medicare and Social Security,…
ID Number:2002.23.8.14.2
Date:1992
Image of United Farm Workers boycott poster, Seattle, 1975
Ephemera

United Farm Workers boycott poster, Seattle, 1975

This 1975 poster calls for the boycott of all lettuce and grapes sold without the UFW label, and calls out Gallo wine in particular for its contract with the Teamsters rather than the farm workers union. Printed on both sides, the poster also describes union-busting efforts by grape growers, the hazardous nature of farm work, and the success of the…
ID Number:2002.23.8.14.4
Date:1975
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