Amote Sias papers
Call Number
Date
Creator
Extent
Language of Materials
Abstract
The Amote Sias papers consist of personal essays, legal and financial records, ephemera and various clippings relating to Sias's life and involvement in Brooklyn politics as well as her role as an African-American activist. The majority of the collection focuses on the political environment in Brooklyn from the mid 1970s and 1980s.
Biographical note
Amote Sias is a resilient African American social activist who was an active member of the Brooklyn community of Carroll Gardens and a candidate for city office during the 1970s-1980s. Sias is also a deeply committed educator and leader, having been a teacher at both the elementary and secondary level in the New York City Public School system as early as the 1970s. Sias went on to become a renowned principal at the Brooklyn Collegiate High School.
Arrangement
The Amote Sias papers are organized into three series by type: Series 1: Personal Papers; Series 2: Professional Papers; Series 3: Publications and Clippings.
Users of the collection should be aware that folders labeled with a date range might also include undated documents. Oversize materials have been placed in two oversize boxes.
Scope and Contents
The Amote Sias papers contain materials concerning Amote Sias and the activist movements she was involved in during the 1970s and 1980s in Brooklyn, New York.
Financial and administrative materials display Amote's involvement in local politics, specifically materials from her campaign for City Council in 1989 as well as her involvement in the Jesse Jackson for President campaign in 1989. Copies of speeches from meetings and example letters to congressmen are also included.
The large number of programs from meetings, lectures and conferences as well as meeting notes and activist paraphernalia provide insight into the active social movements in Brooklyn and across the United States in the late 1970s and 1980s. This collection also documents a variety of the grassroots social organizations active during this timeframe as well as their goals and efforts. The collection is rich with programs, bulletins and manuals from Sias's involvement in various political organizations focusing on social justice, women's rights and Black Nationalism.
Newspaper and magazine clippings provide a broad framework for viewing the political, economic and social forces surrounding the period in which Sias was politically active. These materials also display the local and national efforts for social justice and equality.
The personal materials in this collection reflect Amote Sias and her role as an educator. Early papers and examples of student work provide insight into the academic work and influences on Sias in the early stages of her career. Various ephemera includes a Girl Scout badge and a Jesse Jackson for President campaign poster.
Subjects
Organizations
Genres
People
Topics
Conditions Governing Access
Open to researchers without restriction.
Conditions Governing Use
While many items at the Center for Brooklyn History are unrestricted, we do not own reproduction rights to all materials. Be aware of the several kinds of rights that might apply: copyright, licensing and trademarks. The researcher assumes all responsibility for copyright questions.
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, date (if known); Amote Sias papers, 2008.017, Box and Folder number; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Amote Sias, 1998. Found in Brooklyn Historical Society's collections when the institution reopened in 2004, the materials were subsequently formally accessioned in 2008.
About this Guide
Processing Information
The Amote Sias papers were processed in March 2008 by Cynthia Tobar, under the supervision of Leilani Dawson. Additional processing and description were done in December 2010 by Rachel M. Oleaga. Provenance documentation was found in collection in 2026 and this finding aid was revised and updated by Dee Bowers accordingly.
Sponsor Note
Repository
Series 1: Personal papers, 1971-1980, inclusive
Extent
Scope and Contents
Series 1 is comprised of examples of essays used for college instruction by Sias, as well as handwritten notes from university lectures and research Sias conducted. Also included is a scrapbook example of a student's work from Sias's time as an teacher in the public school system, autographed theater programs from the plays Bubbling Brown Sugar and Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope, and a Girl Scout badge.
Arrangement
The materials in Series 1 are arranged alphabetically within genre.
Articles and papers by Sias, 1980
Girl Scout badge, undated
Notes, 1974
Autographed playbills, 1974-1977, inclusive
General
Playbills from performances of Bubbling Brown Sugar and Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope.
The World Today scrapbook, 1971
Series 2: Professional papers, 1976-1989, inclusive
Extent
Scope and Contents
This series contains materials concerning the professional political life of Amote Sias. The bulk of the material in this series surrounds the many facets of the committee to elect Amote Sias to the City Council. Included are the financial records, campaign materials, posters, and signed petitions of support and opposition to her election. Multiple specifications of objections listing the number of valid and invalid signatures from these petitions are also present. Also included are a list of campaign ideas and agendas for committee meetings. Voter guides in English and Spanish for local elections in New York City and memos covering voter instructions are also included.
The series also includes a variety of programs, notes from meetings, and clippings from multiple political conferences, youth educational outreach activities and other social activist and grassroots workshops that Sias had attended and was actively involved in. Copies of speeches from these organizations are also present along with workshop materials and census records. Her involvement in the Jesse Jackson for President campaign can be seen as well as her interaction with the Latin American community in Brooklyn through MADRE. Multiple political organizations are highlighted in this series including the United Nations, the Democratic National Convention and the Congressional Black Caucus.
Arrangement
The materials in Series 2 are arranged alphabetically by organization or social group. Materials found in box 3 are oversize documents.
Black on Black Love Campaign, 1983
City Council Election, Committee to Elect Amote Sias, 1989
Congressional Black Caucus, 1983-1984, inclusive
Congressional Black Caucus, Workshop on Political Empowerment, Voter Participation and Network Development, 1984
Congressional Districts of the 98th Congress (NY) Population and Housing Census, 1980
Democratic National Convention (San Francisco) guides, 1984
Democratic National Committee, 1984
Election for Delegate to the Democratic National Convention, 1984
Encampment for Citizenship, 1977
Jesse Jackson for President Committee, 1984-1985, inclusive
Jesse Jackson for President poster, circa 1984
JFK Democratic Club Annual Dinner and Dance program, 1976
MADRE Delegation, 1985
Meeting notes, undated
Minority Business Enterprise Legal Defense Fund, undated
National Black Women's Political Caucus, 1984
New York City Community Board manuals, 1987-1988, inclusive
Peace and Enviornmental Convention Coalition, 1984
Rivers State of Nigeria, 1979-1982, inclusive
Summer Youth Instructional Tennis, 1981
UN Conference on Women, 1985
Series 3: Publications and clippings, 1945-1993, inclusive
Extent
Scope and Contents
The publications and clippings in this series include a variety of magazine and newspaper articles that Amote Sias collected from the 1970s and 1980s. Publications include both independent activist media sources, as well as mainstream and local newspaper publications. The bulk of the materials are from the United States, especially the greater New York City region, but a few are from Latin American countries and political groups, including Barricada, a Spanish Sandinista newspaper.
Arrangement
The materials in Series 3 were arranged alphabetically by publication name. Material designated as housed in box 3 or 4 is oversize material.
African Educator v. 9 n.1, 1985
Barricada, 1985
Language of Materials
Scope and Contents
Spanish Sandinista publication.
Tony Brown's Journal, 3rd Quarter, 1985
Cape Cod Standard-Times, 1974
The City Sun, 1984-1985, inclusive
Daily News, 1973-1975, inclusive
Dallas Times Herald, 1984
Delegate, 1983-1984, inclusive
The Des Moines Register, 1991
Folio, 1984
Frontline, 1985
Future v.18-20, 1980-1982, inclusive
JCI World v.18 n. 2, 1980
The Kansas City Star, 1991
Mother Jones v. 9 n. 7, 1984
New Amsterdam News, 1984
New York Newsday, 1991
Scope and Contents
Brooklyn Voters Guide.
New York Post, 1945, 1974, inclusive
New York Times, 1975-1993, inclusive
El Nuevo Diario, 1985
Language of Materials
The Star, 1977
Street, Issue 14, 1975
Sunday Mirror, 1945
Unidentified clippings, 1975
U.S. presidential election coverage, 1984
Scope and Contents
Various independent news media articles.
