A. Philip Randolph Institute collection

Abstract

Collection depicts some of the individuals affiliated with and the activities of the A. Philip Randolph Institute, a national organization of black trade unionists, from 1965 to the mid-1970s. Also depicted are some of the activities of its co-founder, A. Philip Randolph, as a labor leader and President of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (BSCP), from the 1930s to the mid-1970s. The collection consists of studio portraits and views of labor leaders, union officials, civil rights activists and workers, and government officials; and group portraits and views from meetings, rallies, dinners and banquets, presentations, commencements, a memorial service, trips abroad, a voter registration drive, and miscellaneous events. Among those depicted are civil rights leaders and activists Martin Luther King, Jr., Roy Wilkins, Institute co-founder Bayard Rustin; activist Dorothy Height; labor leaders Ashley Totten, Benjamin McLaurin, George Meany, Harry Van Arsdale, and William H. Bowe; actor Frederick O'Neal; and United States President Lyndon B. Johnson. Also included are views of Randolph's wife Lucille. Of note are views of Randolph, as BSCP President, touring Rome while visiting Italy to meet with Italian trade unionists (1952), and posing for group portraits during a visit to Kenya (ca. 1957); views from his 80th birthday dinner at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, New York City (1969); and group portraits and views showing Randolph, as guest of honor, attending presentations and formal gatherings (ca. 1960s). Documentation of the Institute's political and educational activities are limited.

Dates / Origin

Date created: 1946

Library locations

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Photographs and Prints Division

Shelf locator: Sc Photo A. Philip Randolph Institute Collection