Skip to main content
COLLECTION Identifier: MC 714: T-147: Vt-256: MP-6: DVD-062

Additional records of National Abortion Rights Action League, 1967-2004 (inclusive), 1975-1990 (bulk)

Overview

Correspondence and memos; annual plans; budget and financial material; board, committee, and staff meeting minutes, agenda, notes, etc.; state affiliate reports; annual meeting planning material, agenda, and audiovisual material; advertising materials; clippings; training materials; etc., of the National Abortion Rights Action League. Also includes the organization's website.

Dates

  • Creation: 1967-2004
  • Creation: Majority of material found within 1975-1990

Creator

Language of Materials

Materials in English.

Access Restrictions:

Access. The bulk of the collection is open to research.

The following folders require written permission as noted below: 7.1-9.4, 18.8-19.1, 54.2, 56.5-56.6, 57.4, 58.7-59.1, 59.6-59.7, 60.4, 62.9-63.6, 67.5-68.8, 69.3, 69.8, 69.10, 70.5, 70.8, 71.3, 72.10, 75.1-75.2, 76.8, 76.10, 76.12-77.8, 78.7-78.9, 81.7-81.8, 81.10, 82.4, 83.3, 83.8-83.10, 84.2, 84.13-85.1, 85.9, 86.15, 86.17-87.2, 88.4-88.5, 88.9, 88.11, 88.13, 88.14-91.1, 91.3-91.4, 91.6-95.3, 95.5-95.7, 114.12-114.13, 115.6-116.8, 117.7-118.9, 119.5-121.2, 122.4-124.2, 125.5-126.2, 126.9-127.4, 128.3-129.3, 129.9-129.10, 130.3, 131.3-131.9, 132.5-133.2, 134.9, 135.5-135.10, 135.13, 136-7-137.7, 139.4-140.1, 141.2-143.3, 145.1-146.1, 146.9-147.8, 148.6-148.11, 148.13, 148.15-148.16, 149.4-149.9, 150.3-150.4, 150.9-151.7, 152.3-154.2, 155.2-156.4, 158.1-159.2, 159.5-159.7, 160.6-162.1, 162.9-163.5, 163.9, 164.6, 164.8-164.9, 165.2-166.2, 167.1-169.1, 169.3-169.6, 170.1-170.4, 170.11-173., 174.5-176.5, 177.7-178.7, 179.4-180.5, 180.10-180.11 and audiotapes T-147.52 – T-147.90.

Access to the folders above are restricted to past and present officers of NARAL Pro-Choice America, Board members, and Executive Directors, and to those researchers who have the written permission of the Executive Committee until the expiration of their respective restriction periods: Board records, Executive Committee records, Executive Director's records, Legal case records and related correspondence, and confidential advice from government officials are restricted for 30 years from date of creation; Financial records are restricted for 10 years from date of creation.

The following folders are closed as noted below: 23.7-26.2, 33.2, 33.7, 34.5, 36.3-36.9, 40.9, 46.8, 46.13-47.21, 49.7, 54.6, 62.5, 65.6, 65.8, 66.2, 72.7, 76.3, 76.9, 76.11, 80.8-81.4, 88.10, 88.12, 88.14, 91.5, 104.10, 111.13, 124.7, 129.4, 134.4, 230.4-230.5, 241.3-241.4 and audiotape T-147.197.

Access to the folders above are closed to all without exception for 50 years from date of creation: Nominating Committee records; any record or letter that is potentially embarrassing or damaging to the creator, recipient, or subject. Personnel records are closed for 50 years from date of separation of employee to all but past and present officers of NARAL Pro-Choice America, Board members, and Executive Directors, and the employee to which they refer. Contributor's lists, mailing lists, and membership lists are closed for 50 years from date of creation to all but past and present officers of NARAL Pro-Choice America, Board members, and Executive Directors.

An appointment is necessary to use any audiovisual material.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright. Copyright in the records created by the National Abortion Rights Action League is retained by the National Abortion Rights Action League. Copyright in other papers in the collection may be held by their authors, or the authors' heirs or assigns.

Copying. Open records may be copied in accordance with the library's usual procedures.

Extent

105.71 linear feet ((253 + 1/2 file boxes) plus 3 folio folders, 6 folio+ folders, 4 oversize folders, 1 supersize folders, 28 photograph folders, 99 slides, 210 audiotapes, 15 videotapes, 1 DVD, 1 motion picture, 1 object, and electronic records.)

The bulk of the Additional records of the National Abortion Rights Action League document the organization's efforts to repel attacks against the 1973 Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade (which affirmed that American women's constitutional right to privacy under the due process clause of the 14th Amendment extended to a woman's decision to have an abortion) and to monitor all other local, state, and federal legislation impacting reproductive rights. Efforts at the local, state, and federal level since 1973 have restricted or threatened to restrict reproductive rights in a number of manners including eliminating public funding for abortion, requiring parental consent, requiring wait periods before obtaining an abortion, redefining the beginning of human life, etc. NARAL has consistently opposed and continues to oppose these efforts. These records include correspondence and memos; minutes and meeting agenda; strategic plans; affiliate reports; publications and flyers; financial material; memorabilia; audio and video recordings; photographs; etc. Most original folder titles were retained. Folder titles appearing in square brackets were supplied by the processor. There is related material: Records of the National Abortion Rights Action League (MC 313); National Abortion Rights Action League Videotape Collection (Vt-4); National Abortion Rights Action League State affiliate newsletter collection (Pr-5); and National Abortion Rights Action League State affiliates printed material collection (Pr-3). Additional audiovisual material received with the records of NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts between 1982 and 2008 (accession numbers 82-M192, 97-M157, 2008-M109) were transferred to Series V and Series IV in September 2014. Folders are listed in intellectual, not numerical, order.

Series I, BOARD OF DIRECTORS, COMMITTEES, AND ANNUAL MEETINGS, 1969-1990 (#1.1-28.5, PD.1-PD.6, T-147.1 - T-147.154, E.1), includes minutes; agenda; memos and correspondence; by-laws; notes; attendance lists; draft plans and strategies; lists of committee members; audio recordings; etc., of NARAL's board of directors and board-appointed committees, including the affiliations committee (alternately called the program and affiliate development committee), by-laws committee, communications committee, executive committee, finance committee, long-range planning committee, NARAL PAC endorsement committee, nomination committee, and personnel committee. Although some committees appear to have remained in existence throughout NARAL's existence (such as the executive and affiliations committee), others seem to have been short-lived and their charges shifted to remaining committees. While some committees' charges seem self-explanatory, others require further description: the charge of the affiliations committee was to approve affiliate status for state organizations applying for such status, monitor their adherence to the rules for affiliation, and approve affiliate organizations for a number of different types of grants; the charge of the NARAL PAC endorsement committee was to approve financial and in-kind contributions to pro-choice politicians at the state and federal level. The board of directors also appointed several short-term committees such as the ad hoc committee on committees which reviewed NARAL's committee structure and made recommendations for changes, and the Minors' Access Taskforce which led a national campaign in the late 1980s in response to the emergence of state legislation that required minors (those under 18 years of age) to obtain parental consent before receiving an abortion (see also, Series III, Subseries C). Noticeably absent from this series are the records of the NARAL Foundation whose "mission is to support and protect, as a fundamental right and value, a woman's freedom to make personal decisions regarding the full range of reproductive choices through education, training, organizing, legal action, and public policy" and serves as the funding mechanism for most of the organization's activities (only two folders of material is present). See also Series II, Subseries B for Foundation correspondence and other material. Also included in this series are agenda planning materials, financial materials, correspondence, audio recordings, etc., documenting NARAL's annual membership meeting at which the board and committees met, but which also included an educational component that was attended by individual members as well as members of state affiliate organizations. Topics of panels at annual meetings included minority women; abortion, religion, and the status of women; contraceptive development; international abortion laws; etc., as well as workshops to train attendees in handling the media; organizing at college campuses; community organizing; etc. The series also includes the organization's web site, which is being captured periodically as part of Harvard University Library's Web Archive Collection (WAX). The series is arranged beginning with board of directors' records (arranged chronologically), followed by committee records (arranged alphabetically), and then annual meeting records (arranged chronologically).

Series II, EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS, 1968-2004 (#28.6-95.7, OD.1, PD.7-PD.11, T-147.155 - T-147.162), includes correspondence and memos; draft speeches, position papers, flyers, advertisements, and mailers; meeting minutes; budget and financial material; subject files; petitions; contracts; project files; Executive Director reports; fund-raising and grant files; personnel records; photographs; audio and video recordings, etc. Included are records generated by a number of executive directors (both ongoing and acting) including Lee Gidding (1969-1974), Beatrice Blair (1974-1975), Karen Mulhauser (1975-1981), Judy Widdicombe (acting, 1981-1982), Nanette Falkenburg (1982-1985), and Kate Michelman (1985-2004). It appears that in its early years NARAL maintained a central filing system and most records were included in the executive director's records with the exception of board and committee records. As the organization grew, some of these records appear to have been moved to their respective departments while others remained with the executive director's records. As a result many of the records documenting department activities may be found with both the department's records and with the executive director's records. The series also includes minutes, agenda, correspondence, etc., of a number of other organizations that focused on reproductive rights since Mulhauser, Falkenburg, and Michelman served on their boards or worked in coalitions with these organizations. The series is arranged in three subseries.

Subseries A, Karen Mulhauser and others, 1968-1983 (#28.6-53.14, OD.1, PD.7-PD.9, T-147.155 - T-147.162), contains correspondence and memos; draft speeches, position papers, flyers, advertisements, and mailers; meeting minutes; budget and financial material; subject files; petitions; contracts; project files; Executive Director reports; fund-raising and grant files; personnel records; photographs; audio and video tapes, etc., the majority having been generated during Karen Mulhauser's tenure, but also including material created by Lee Gidding (1969-1974) and Beatrice Blair (1974-1975), two early executive directors, and Judy Widdicombe (1981-1982), acting executive director following Mulhauser's resignation. The subseries is arranged alphabetically.

Subseries B, Nanette Falkenburg, 1974-1985 (#53.15-87.10, PD.10), contains correspondence and memos; draft speeches, position papers, flyers, advertisements, and mailers; meeting minutes; budget and financial material; subject files; petitions; contracts; project files; Executive Director reports; fund-raising and grant files; personnel records; photographs; etc. Also included in this subseries is NARAL Foundation correspondence and related material (1982-1984). The subseries is arranged alphabetically.

Subseries C, Kate Michelman, 1985-2004 (#87.11-95.7), contains correspondence and memos; draft speeches, position papers, flyers, advertisements, and mailers; meeting minutes; budget and financial material; subject files; project files; Executive Director reports; fund-raising and grant files; personnel records; etc. In January of 1992, Michelman told a news conference that "it is time for the pro-choice majority to prepare for the inevitable loss of our right to choose, and to begin developing strategies to restore and ultimately secure this fundamental right." Michelman announced the formation of a National Commission on America Without Roe, a 44-member group of prominent legal scholars, public health and government officials, educators and activists. The planning materials, draft reports, meeting minutes, etc., for this commission are included in this subseries. Also received with this subseries were copies of records of judicial appointments made by George Bush as governor of Texas. It is presumed that these were acquired through a public records request in order to investigate Bush's appointment of pro-life judges during his presidential campaign. The bulk of these were removed and only annotated copies remain. The bulk of Michelman's records as executive director are not included here. It is presumed that they are still held at NARAL national offices.

Series III, AFFILIATE DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT, 1968-2003 (#95.8-205.4, PD.11-PD.19, T-147.163 - T-147.172, Vt-256.1), includes correspondence and memos; clippings; affiliate reports; memos; minutes; financial statements; grant contracts; etc., documenting the activities of the affiliate development department and assistance, instructions, etc., to individual state affiliate organizations. It is divided into three subseries.

Subseries A, Administrative, 1968-2002 (#95.8-114.8, PD.11, Vt-256.1), includes memos and correspondence; meeting minutes and notes; budget and other financial material; annual department plans; contracts; job descriptions; reports; mailings to affiliates and state coordinators; fund-raising guidelines; etc. These records document the activities of the department in supporting and aiding in the development of state affiliate organizations by relaying information from other departments to state affiliate organizations, acting as a liaison between the affiliations committee and the affiliates, providing training, assisting with grant applications and processing grant payments for affiliates, overseeing affiliate adherence to the rules of affiliation, etc. The series is arranged alphabetically.

Subseries B, Affiliate reports, 1974-2001 (#114.9-180.13, PD.12-PD.17, T-147.163 - T-147.165), includes monthly, quarterly, and annual reports filed with NARAL by state affiliate organizations documenting their legislative, organizing, publicity, and fund-raising activities. These reports consist of annual plans; tax returns and financial statements; clippings; program mailers, flyers, and posters; affiliate board meeting minutes and agendas; etc. In early years, reports were filed with NARAL annually on a calendar year schedule, and then on a quarterly (and sometimes monthly) basis, but this appears to have changed to a fiscal year schedule by 1983 or 1984. Affiliate newsletters included with annual, quarterly, and monthly reports were removed from this subseries to form the NARAL Affiliate Newsletter Collection Pr-5. Also included in this subseries are applications for affiliate status; correspondence; site visit reports and development assessments of affiliates; job descriptions for positions funded by NARAL grants; loan and grant agreements between affiliates and NARAL; and evaluations of trainings conducted by NARAL and attended by members of affiliate organizations.

State organizations were required to apply to the Affiliate Development Committee for affiliate status. In order to become an affiliate, they were required to have established a board of directors, hold regular meetings and fund-raising events, maintain a dues-paying membership, publish a regular newsletter, establish a Congressional District contact, engage in public relations and public education activities, and were strongly encouraged to incorporate (these requirements were regularly amended over the years). Once granted affiliate status, an organization was required to abide by these guidelines as well as using NARAL as part of their name or clearly indicating their affiliate status on all public documents. Failure to do so resulted in disaffiliation. Affiliate status afforded state organizations greater access to grants administered by NARAL that were used to support efforts to keep legal and medically safe abortions available to women at both the state and national level. A number of state affiliates were unable to maintain their status due to board or staff inefficiencies or a dearth of actively pro-choice individuals in their given state. Often these organizations were granted affiliate status only to be disaffiliated within a few years. Many of these reapplied for and were granted affiliate status in subsequent years. In other cases they disbanded and new organizations were formed that applied for affiliate status in their place. NARAL made efforts to establish at least one affiliate in each of the fifty states beginning in 1976 or 1977, although in several states, such as Utah, Mississippi, and Montana, they found it difficult to maintain viable organizations. Other states such as Massachusetts, Minnesota, and New York, were able to establish and maintain strong and vibrant affiliate organizations that were important to NARAL's efforts at both the state and national level. The series is arranged alphabetically by state and thence chronologically. The Schlesinger Library also holds the Records of NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts, 1972-2008 (MC 659), one of NARAL's state affiliates.

Subseries C, Trainings and campaigns, 1977-2003 (#180.14-205.4, PD.18sl-PD.19, T-147.166 - T-147.172), includes memos, correspondence, notes, training manuals, evaluations, schedules, attendee lists, applications to attend trainings, contracts with trainers, etc. NARAL offered a variety of trainings for members of state affiliate organizations and other pro-choice activists including electoral, media, fund-raising, and organizing trainings. In addition they offered trainings on special issues such as public funding of abortion and board and staff development trainings. The intent of these trainings was to educate activists in successful methods of raising funds for and awareness of the pro-choice message and to effectively navigate the political system to gain and maintain support for pro-choice legislation. Attendees generally filed applications to attend various trainings and were approved by the affiliate development department. Often these applications were accompanied by grant requests to cover the cost of travel and training. Trainings were held at both the regional and national level and were often conducted by seasoned members of state affiliate organizations as well as NARAL staff. Also included in this series are memos, correspondence, press releases, meeting minutes, notes, and related materials documenting joint NARAL and affiliate campaigns mounted in response to specific attacks or threats to reproductive rights. Examples include limits on minors' access to abortion without parental consent, restrictions to public funding of abortion, the nomination of Robert Bork (and others) to the Supreme Court, and Supreme Court cases such as Webster v. Reproductive Health Services which upheld a Missouri law that imposed restrictions on the use of state funds, facilities, and employees in performing, assisting with, or counseling on abortions. Of special note is the Silent No More! campaign which recruited women who had had abortions and arranged press conferences around the country at which they told their personal abortion stories and the affects on their lives, sometimes using their actual names and in other cases pseudonyms. A number of these women's letters and stories are included in this subseries. The subseries is arranged beginning with trainings (filed chronologically) followed by campaigns (filed alphabetically).

Series IV, COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT, 1967-2004 (#205.5-234.2, FD.3, F+D.1-F+D.3, OD.2-OD.3, SD.1, PD.20sl-PD.30, T-147.173 - T-147.208, Vt-256.2 - Vt-256.15, DVD-062.1, MP-6.1), includes draft and published advertisements; clippings; department work plans; correspondence; press strategies and contact lists; press packets and releases; press tour and press conference files; mailers, flyers, and brochures; audio and video recordings; speeches; publications; photographs; bumper stickers and other promotional objects; etc. Much of this series documents the communications department's effort to track positive and negative changes in attitudes and legislation about reproductive rights on both the state and national level, as well as to document the activity and public image of NARAL. Through press conferences, press releases, fact sheets, and publications, the department informed the public about threats to women's reproductive rights in the form of legislation, political candidates running for office, nominations of candidates for higher court appointments, etc., and NARAL's efforts to protect those rights for all women. Efforts of note include the Silent No More! (1985) campaign which enlisted the aid of women across the country who appeared at national press conferences, rallies, etc., to share their personal stories and experiences with abortion (both positive and negative) in order to engender support for pro-choice legislation (see also Series III, Subseries C); and the media activist program which trained women at state affiliate organizations and college campuses to monitor local press for pro-choice and anti-abortion sentiment, issue press releases and schedule press conferences, and provide local media with articles and inform them of local activities, among other charges. Additional material was added to this series in September 2014. These materials are housed in #T-l47.05 - T-147.08, Vt-256.6 - Vt-256.15, DVD-062.1. All other files remain in the same order. Folders are listed in intellectual, not numerical, order. The series is arranged alphabetically.

Series V, LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT AND NARAL POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE, 1969-2001 (#234.3-254.5, T-147.209 - T-147.210), includes correspondence and memos; clippings; legislative drafts; amicus curiae briefs; lobbying reports; mailings to Congress; Congressional testimony, etc., of NARAL's legislative department which monitored, analyzed, and offered testimony regarding state and federal legislation affecting reproductive rights. In addition to monitoring legislation, the legislative department also tracked nominations to and cases before the Supreme Court that would impact current laws regarding reproductive rights. Also included are briefing papers; budget material; donor lists; campaign contribution lists for political candidates at the state and federal level; etc., documenting the work of the NARAL Political Action Committee which supported the campaigns of pro-choice politicians at the state and federal level through financial and in-kind donations. Additional material was added to this series in September 2014. These materials are housed in #T-l47.09 - T-147.10. All other files remain in the same order. Folders are listed in intellectual, not numerical, order. The series is arranged alphabetically.

Series VI, OVERSIZED, 1972-1980 (#FD.1-FD.3, F+D.1-F+D.6, OD.1-OD.4, SD.1), consists of material described in previous series and material removed from folders described previously. This listing serves as a shelf list.

Most of the photographs in this collection are or will be cataloged in VIA, Harvard University's Visual Information Access database. Others, referred to as "uncataloged" photographs, are not of sufficient research interest to warrant cataloging and are simply treated as part of the documents they accompany; they are marked on the back with an asterisk in square brackets [*].

HISTORY

The National Abortion Rights Action League (since 2003 NARAL Pro-Choice America) is the only national lobbying and membership organization devoted solely to maintaining the availability of safe, legal abortion. Originally called the National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws, then the National Abortion Rights Action League, and later the National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League, NARAL was established at the First National Conference on Abortion Laws: Modification or Repeal?, held in February 1969 in Chicago. The conference, sponsored by 21 organizations and attended by 350 people, included a planning session for NARAL and the report of NARAL's pre-formation planning committee: Lawrence Lader of New York, Garrett Hardin of California, and Dr. Lonny Myers of Chicago. Those attending the session elected a 12-person Planning Committee: Lawrence Lader (Chairman), Ruth Proskauer Smith (Vice Chairman), Ruth Cusack (Secretary), Beatrice McClintock (Treasurer), Constance Bille Finnerty, Mrs. Marc Hughes Fisher, Betty Friedan, Norval Morris, Stewart Mott, Dr. Bernard Nathanson, Edna Smith, and Percy Sutton. The committee held its first official meeting in New York on February 25, 1969. It hired Lee Gidding as the first Executive Director; she opened NARAL's office in New York City on March 3, 1969.

The Planning Committee, meeting regularly between February and September 1969, defined NARAL's purpose and program, drafted by-laws to submit to the membership for approval, prepared a slate to run for the Board of Directors, and directed NARAL's activities. The Committee defined NARAL's purpose as follows: NARAL, recognizing the basic human right of a woman to limit her own reproduction, is dedicated to the elimination of all laws and practices that would compel any woman to bear a child against her will. To that end, it proposes to initiate and co-ordinate political, social, and legal action of individuals and groups concerned with providing safe abortions by qualified physicians for all women seeking them regardless of economic status.

The original NARAL program had six parts: 1. Assist in the formation in all states of direct political action groups dedicated to the purpose of NARAL; 2. Serve as a clearing house for activities related to NARAL's purpose; 3. Create new materials for mass distribution which tell the repeal story dramatically and succinctly; 4. Train field workers to organize and stimulate legislative action; 5. Suggest direct action projects; 6. Raise funds for the above activities.

The Board of Directors, elected by the membership, officially replaced the Planning Committee at the first Board meeting, held on September 27, 1969. The Board elected Honorary Officers (Dr. Lester Breslow and Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm as Presidents, Senator Maurine Neuberger as Vice President), Officers (including New York City Councilwoman Carol Greitzer as President), an Executive Committee (Lawrence Lader, Chairman), and a Nominating Committee. In addition, the Board adopted a very specific program of action (see NARAL News, Winter 1970).

From 1969 till early 1973, NARAL worked with other groups to repeal state abortion laws and to oversee implementation of abortion policies in those few states that had liberalized their laws. On January 22, 1973, in Roe vs. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court held that, during the first three months of pregnancy, abortion should be a private decision between a woman and her doctor, and that during the second three months state regulation should be permitted only to protect the health of the woman. To reflect the Court's repeal of restrictive abortion laws, NARAL became the National Abortion Rights Action League in late 1973.

The Court decision did not settle the issue of women's right to choose abortion. Anti-abortion groups, funded predominantly by the Roman Catholic Church and some other religious organizations, stepped up their political activities, exerting pressure on hospitals, abortion clinics, state legislatures, and the U.S. Congress to limit, or prohibit, abortions. In response, NARAL began to recruit members and funds more actively, expanded its staff, moved its headquarters to Washington, D.C., to facilitate lobbying, and established a political action committee (NARAL PAC) to solicit funds and work on behalf of political candidates. Since its establishment in 1969, NARAL has sponsored workshops, symposiums, and conferences; initiated legal suits; raised funds; published and distributed educational materials; cooperated with numerous other groups in a variety of projects; and demonstrated, lobbied, and testified on behalf of women's right to legal, safe abortions.

NARAL made efforts to establish at least one affiliate organization in each of the fifty states beginning in 1976 or 1977, although in several states, such as Utah, Mississippi, and Montana, they found it difficult to maintain viable organizations. Other states such as Massachusetts, Minnesota, and New York, were able to establish and maintain strong and vibrant affiliate organizations that were and continue to be important to NARAL's efforts at both the state and national level.

ARRANGEMENT

The collection is arranged in six series:

  1. Series I. Board of directors, committees, and annual meetings, 1969-1990 (#1.1-28.5, PD.1-PD.6, T-147.1 - T-147.154, E.1)
  2. Series II. Executive directors, 1968-2004 (#28.6-95.7, OD.1, PD.7-PD.11, T-147.155 - T-147.162)
  3. Series III. Affiliate development department, 1968-2003 (#95.8-205.4, PD.11-PD.19, T-147.163 - T-147.172, Vt-256.1)
  4. Series IV. Communications department, 1967-2004 (#205.5-234.2, FD.3, F+D.1-F+D.3, OD.2-OD.3, SD.1, PD.20sl-PD.30, T-147.173 - T-147.208, Vt-256.2 - Vt-256.15, DVD-062.1, MP-6.1, Mem-1)
  5. Series V. Legislative department and NARAL Political Action Committee, 1969-2001 (#234.3-254.5, T-147.209 - T-147.10)
  6. Series VI. Oversized, 1972-1980 (#FD.1-FD.3, F+D.1-F+D.6, OD.1-OD.4, SD.1)

Physical Location

Collection stored off site: researchers must request access 36 hours before use.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Accession numbers: 79-M278, 80-M69, 80-M125, 80-M167, 80-M256, 81-M11, 81-M50, 81-M67, 81-M181, 81-M187, 81-M300, 82-M192, 82-M217, 83-M147, 83-M152, 83-M154, 83-M161, 83-M181, 83-M200, 83-M209, 83-M230, 84-M10, 84-M28, 84-M185, 85-M2, 85-M81, 85-M242, 86-M24, 86-M42, 86-M80, 86-M228, 86-M231, 86-M236, 86-M251, 87-M178, 88-M110, 89-M138, 89-M161, 89-M186, 89-M224, 90-M105, 90-M136, 90-M197, 91-M90,92-M86, 92-M123, 92-M200, 92-M215, 93-M66, 98-M33, 99-M38, 99-M49, 2000-M105, 2003-M43, 2005-M113, 2006-M119, 2007-M189, 2011-M43

These records of the National Abortion Rights Action League were given to the Schlesinger Library by the National Abortion Rights Action League between 1979 and 2011.

Related Material:

There is related material at the Schlesinger Library; see Records of the National Abortion Rights Action League (MC 313); National Abortion Rights Action League Videotape Collection (Vt-4); National Abortion Rights Action League State affiliate newsletter collection (Pr-5); and National Abortion Rights Action League State affiliates printed material collection (Pr-3).

SEPARATION RECORD

Donor: National Abortion Rights Action League (NARAL)

Accession numbers: 79-M278, 80-M69, 80-M125, 80-M167, 80-M256, 81-M11, 81-M50, 81-M67, 81-M181, 81-M187, 81-M300, 82-M192, 82-M217, 83-M147, 83-M152, 83-M154, 83-M161, 83-M181, 83-M200, 83-M209, 83-M230, 84-M10, 84-M28, 84-M185, 85-M2, 85-M81, 85-M242, 86-M24, 86-M42, 86-M80, 86-M228, 86-M231, 86-M236, 86-M251, 87-M178, 88-M110, 89-M138, 89-M161, 89-M186, 89-M224, 90-M105, 90-M136, 90-M197, 91-M90,92-M86, 92-M123, 92-M200, 92-M215, 93-M66, 98-M33, 99-M38, 99-M49, 2000-M105, 2003-M43, 2005-M113, 2006-M119, 2007-M189, 2011-M43

Processed by: Mark Vassar

The following items have been removed from the collection and added to the Women's Newsletter and Periodical Collection (Pr-4):

  1. Action Alert (American Association of University Women), Vol. III Iss. 7 (May 12, 1983)
  2. Action Alert (Citizens for a Real Choice, Bismarck, North Dakota), August 1982
  3. Action Alert (Family Planning Advocates of New York State, Inc.), [1977?]
  4. Action Alert (Women's Liberation Union of Rhode Island), [January 1978]
  5. Action Alert! (I.W.Y. [International Women's Year]-Boulder), June 3-5, 1977
  6. Albany Memo (Family Planning Associates, Albany, New York), Vol. II No. 5 (July-August 1977)
  7. American Baby's Childbirth Educator (American Baby, Inc.), Fall 1982
  8. AHEA's Washington Dateline (American Home Economics Association), Vol. VII No. 11 (April 1981)
  9. APHA Newsletter (American Public Health Association, Population Section), December 1980
  10. The Bell Review (Medical Students for Choice - Pennsylvania Chapters) Vol. 1 No. 1 (Fall 1997)
  11. Black Women's Agenda (Black Women's Agenda, Inc.), Vol. 10 No. 5 (April 1987)
  12. California Women (California Commission of the Status of Women), Iss. IV (1987; Iss. IV (1989)
  13. Campaign for Choice News (Campaign for Choice, Oklahoma), August 1990
  14. Caucus (Minnesota Women's Education Council), June/July 1983; June 1988
  15. The Caucus Report (Washington State Women's Political Caucus), Vol. 1 No. 1 (Winter 1990)
  16. Contraceptive Technology Update (Contraceptive Technology Update, Inc.), Vol. 1 No. 1 (April 1980)
  17. Co-Ord Inform (Co-Ordinating Committee in Defense of the 1967 Abortion Act, London, England), No. 14 (December 1978)
  18. Emco Newsletter (Emko Company), December 1973
  19. Harrisburg Memo (Planned Parenthood Pennsylvania Affiliates), Vol. 3 No. 1 (Spring 1986)
  20. Intercom (Population Services International), Vol. 2 No. 3 (March 1974)
  21. Law File (International Planned Parenthood Federation), No.9-10 (September-October 1979)
  22. NCWO Bulletin (National Coalition of Women's Organizations), Vol. I No. 1 (May-June 1979); Vol. I No. 3 (July-August 1979)
  23. New Jersey Family Planning News (Family Planning Affairs Office, Conference of New Jersey Planned Parenthood Affiliates and the New Jersey Family Planning Forum), Vol. 5, No. 3, May 22, 1979; Vol. 7, No. 1 (March 30, 1981
  24. News About Women at Work (National Coalition on Working Women), [1980]
  25. Newsletter (Abortion Reform Action Group, Natal, South Africa) No. 11 (September 1976); No. 18 (October 1979)
  26. Newsletter (Cambridge Gay and Lesbian Alliance), June 1985
  27. Newsletter (Canadian Association for the Repeal of the Abortion Law), January 1979
  28. Newsletter (Citizens for Parenthood by Choice, Austin, Texas), February 1977; March 1977
  29. Newsletter (Feminist Caucus of the National Abortion Federation), Vol. 1 No. 1 (January 1979)
  30. Newsletter (Harrisburg Reproductive Health Services, Pennsylvania), Summer 1981
  31. Newsletter (Idaho Women's Network, Inc.), [December 1989]
  32. [Newsletter] (International Association for the Free Choice of Abortion), Vol. 1 No. 3 (October 1976)
  33. [Newsletter] (Midtown Hospital), 1987
  34. Newsletter (Preterm, Cleveland, Ohio), Vol. 6 No. 4 (Winter 1979)
  35. Newsletter (Tri-County Coalition for the Right to Choose, Ohio), August 1977; July--August 1979
  36. [Newsletter] (Women in Communications, Inc., Washington D.C. Chapter), August 1983
  37. [Newsletter] (Women's Health Organization, Inc., Orlando, Florida), April 1979
  38. Notes from the Delta (Delta Women's Clinic), Vol. 1, No. 2 (June 1975)
  39. Options (Religious Coalition for Abortion Rights), Vol. 4 No. 5 (June 1977)
  40. Population Options (Center for Population Options), Vol. 2 No. 1-Vol. 2 No. 2 (Spring 1984-Summer 1984)
  41. Pro-Choice Alert (Association of Virginia Planned Parenthood Affiliates), Vol. 4, No. 1 (January 21, 1985)
  42. Pro-Choice News (Canadian Abortion Rights Action League), Spring 1986
  43. Progress Report (National Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs, Inc.), December 1981
  44. Reason: Abortion in Perspective (Campaign for Common Sense in Abortion, London England), July 1978; September 1978
  45. Reproductive Rights Newsletter (Coalition for Abortion Rights and Against Sterilization Abuse), Iss. 2 (May/June 1980)
  46. Special Care Center Newsletter (Harold B. Van Maren, M.D., Inc.), July 1976
  47. Spiral (Planned Parenthood of Kansas, Inc.), Winter 1981
  48. State Newsletter (Coalition for Right to Choice, Wisconsin), April [1976]
  49. Stop Depro-Provera (Connecticut Headquarters of the National Stop Depro-Provera Coalition), February 1979
  50. Tappa Reporter (Tennessee Association of Planned Parenthood Affiliates), Vol. V, No. 1 (January 1978)
  51. Update (National Abortion Federation), Winter 1985
  52. The Voice for Choice (Colorado Taxpayers for Choice, Inc.), Vol. 1 No. 5 (October 1985)
  53. WOMENews (Pennsylvania Commission for Women), Vol. 3, No. 6 (May-June 1980)
  54. Women's Caucus News (Group Health Cooperative, Seattle, Washington), February 1986
  55. Women's Vote Project [Newsletter] (American Association of University Women), June 1984
  56. Zero Parenthood Advocate (Zero Parenthood Now!, Delhi, New York) Vol. 7 No. 1 (February 1984)
  57. ZPG-Calif. Newsletter (Zero Population Growth-California), Vol. VII No. 12 (December 1978); Vol. VIII No. 2 (February 1979)

The following items have been removed from the collection and transferrred to the Schlesinger Library periodicals collection:

  1. ALRANZ/ Abortion Law Reform Association New Zealand October 1979; February 1982
  2. Abortion Research Notes (International Reference Center for Abortion Research), Vol. 5 No. 2 (April 1976)
  3. Activist Update (National Abortion Rights Action League), Vol. 1 No. 1 (August 20, 1982); Vol. 1 No. 2 (October 15, 1982); Vol. 2 No. 1 (November 23, 1983)
  4. Albany Memo (Family Planning Advocates of New York State), Vol. II, No. 6 (September 1977); Vol. III, No. 6 (September-October 1978)
  5. AVS News (Association for Voluntary Sterility), Vol. 23, No. 3 (September 1985)
  6. The Campaign Report (The 80% Majority Campaign), Vol. 1 No. 17 (December 23, 1985); Vol. 3 No. 7 (July 11, 1988)
  7. CARASA News (Committee for Abortion Rights and Against Sterilization Abuse), Vol. II No. 7 (August 3, 1978)
  8. CDRR News (The Committee to Defend Reproductive Rights), February 1985
  9. Conscience (Family Planning Public Affairs Office), September 29, 1975
  10. Graduate Woman (American Association of University Women), Vol. 80, No. 3 (April 1986)
  11. Issues in Brief (Alan Guttmacher Institute), Vol. 2, No. 4 (January 1982); Vol. 3 No. 1 (February 1983); Vol. 3 No. 2 (February 1983)
  12. Legislative Update (National Abortion Rights Action League) 1976-1989
  13. NAF Public Affairs Bulletin (National Abortion Federation), Special Summer Issue ([August 1983]); September 1983; December 1983/January 1984
  14. NAF Quarterly (National Abortion Federation), Vol. 1 Iss. 1 ([1978]); Vol. 1 Iss. 2 ([1978]); Vol. 2, Iss. 3 ([1979)]; Vol. 3 Iss. 3 (September 30, 1980)
  15. NARAL News (National Abortion Rights Action League), 1970-1988
  16. Network News (National Women's Health Network), January 1984; Summer 1984; March/April 1990
  17. Newsletter (Canadian Abortion Rights Action League), Fall 1984
  18. Newsletter (Catholics for Free Choice), Vol. 1 No. 1 (June 1974)
  19. Newsletter (National Abortion Rights Action League), 1978-1980
  20. Newsletter (Women's Campaign Fund), April 1976; May 1976; July 1976; September 23, 1976
  21. Newsletter (Women's Center for Reproductive Health, Jacksonville, Florida), December 1979
  22. [Newsletter] (Women's Vote Project), Vol. 1 No. 1-Vol. 1 No. 4 (April-August/September 1984)
  23. The Phyllis Schlafly Report, Vol. 8 No. 5, Section 2 (December 1974)
  24. State Government News (Council of State Governments), December 1977

The following items were removed and transferred to the Schlesinger Library book division:

  1. Abortion Politics: The Hawaii Experience by Patricia A. Steinhoff, et al., 1977
  2. Abortion Research: International Experience by Henry P. David, 1974
  3. An Annotated Bibliography of Induced Abortion by Gunnar K. Af Geijerstam, 1969
  4. L'Avortement by Guy and Michele Francois, 1971
  5. Clinic Obstetrics and Gynecology by George Schaefer, ed., 1971
  6. Family Planning and Abortion in the Socialists Countries of Central and Eastern Europe by Henry P. David, 1970

The following items were removed and transferred to the Sophia Smith Collection at Smith College:

  1. Conferencia Regeional Latino_America de Poblacion: Sesion Z: Fecundidad by Union Internacional Para el Estudio Cientifico de la Poblacion, 1970
  2. Japan's Experience in Family Planning - Past and Present by Minoru Muramatsu, 1967
  3. Report of a Study: Legalized Abortion and the Public Health by National Academy of Sciences, 1975

Processing Information

Processed: October 2013

By: Mark Vassar with the assistance of Samuel Bauer.

Updated September 2014

By Cat Lea Holbrook

Title
National Abortion Rights Action League. Additional records of the National Abortion Rights Action League, 1967-2004 (inclusive), 1975-1990 (bulk): A Finding Aid
Author
Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America
Language of description
eng
Sponsor
Processing of this collection was made possible in part by gifts from generous donors to the Maximum Access Project.
EAD ID
sch01441

Repository Details

Part of the Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute Repository

The preeminent research library on the history of women in the United States, the Schlesinger Library documents women's lives from the past and present for the future. In addition to its traditional strengths in the history of feminisms, women’s health, and women’s activism, the Schlesinger collections document the intersectional workings of race and ethnicity, gender, sexuality, and class in American history.

Contact:
3 James St.
Cambridge MA 02138 USA
617-495-8540