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Papers documenting the professional life and advocacy of Hanes Walton, an eminent professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Michigan. Collection includes correspondence, book reviews, dissertations produced under his guidance, materials demonstrating Walton's participation in university minority advocacy committees and publications, course syllabi and exams, oral histories and statistics gathered in the course of Walton's research, and files pertaining to his role as a supporter of historically black colleges and universities in the United States. Select files in this collection are in digital formats.

Materials in the Hanes Walton papers will be of particular interest to those seeking to understand one of the nation's preeminent African American political scientists as academician, teacher, and advocate; the collection's contents also illuminate broader questions of minority education, political participation by African Americans, and the process of scholarly publication in the United States. Although Walton enjoyed a career of more than forty years at four collegiate institutions, the coverage provided by his collection begins in the late 1980s and addresses his time at Savannah State College and the University of Michigan. Materials include drafts of works and reviews, research material, and correspondence. Also, video recordings of tributes to Walton by his University of Michigan colleagues, as well as of the 2015 memorial lecture in his name.

Interracial, non-profit, non-partisan community service organization in Battle Creek, Michigan (formerly Battle Creek Area Urban League) founded in 1966 and affiliated with the National Urban League. Series include: History, Administration, Correspondence, Reports, Meetings, Programs, Community Memberships, Public Relations, Events, Battle Creek Area Urban League Guild, and Visual, Audio, and Digital Materials.

The records of the Southwestern Michigan Urban League span the years 1962-2007. The League's mission of providing and administering services for minorities and the disadvantaged, as well as internal operations, are reflected in the records, which consist mainly of administrative and program materials, correspondence, minutes, reports and proposals. While the years represented incorporate tenures of numerous executive directors, the records most fully document leadership provided by Benjamin Richmond (1982-1987) and Joyce Brown (1988-1992).

The Southwestern Michigan Urban League Records are relevant to the study of the administration of African American social service organizations, especially Urban Leagues, within the context of particular communities. The collection is strong in illuminating the effectiveness of collaboration -- civic, business and educational groups addressing interrelated community issues. Both Richmond and Brown maintained high profiles on numerous boards and committees working in Battle Creek to solve social problems and promote economic development.