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Peek in the Stacks

A map issued by the Los Angeles Unified School District at a meeting held to inform parents of the 1979 plan to bus children between Valley schools and schools in metropolitan Los Angeles, 1979. Daily News Morgue Files of the Bustop Campaign Collection

In 1961, Mary Ellen Crawford, an African-American teen, attempted to enroll at South Gate High School, the closest high school to her home. The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) refused her request, and directed her to enroll at the more-distant Jordan High School. Jordan’s student body was 99% African-American, while South Gate High's was 98% Caucasian. Crawford's parents filed suit in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleging that LAUSD exercised discriminatory attendance boundary practices...

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William Grant Still is shown sitting at a piano looking at a sheet of music. Central Avenue-Its Rise and Fall: Including the Musical Renaissance of Black Los Angles, Bette Yarbrough Cox, ML 3556 .C75 1996

In honor of Black History Month, this week’s blog post highlights just a few African Americans who have contributed to the development and culture of the City of Los Angeles. These figures have roots embedded deep in the history of Los Angeles, some well before California was even part of the United States. Special Collections and Archives holds many interesting items that capture this history...

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Gun crew pass belonging to Raymond Marshall.

As United States involvement in the Second World War loomed near, President Roosevelt recognized that the production of arms and armaments to support the US and its allies would require a massive number of workers, including African Americans who continued to suffer under segregation ...

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Van Norman Reservoir following the Sylmar Earthquake, ca. 1971

This week marks the 47th anniversary of the Sylmar Earthquake. Many details of that difficult time are documented in the Duane Georgeson Papers, held in Special Collections and Archives. Duane Georgeson was a twelve-year veteran of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power...

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