Cecily McMillan Papers
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Abstract
Cecily McMillan (she/they, born 1988) is an activist and prisoner rights advocate. She was a participant in the Occupy Wall Street momement (OWS), and was arrested and convicted of felony second-degree assault during an incident at an OWS protest in Zuccotti Park on March 17, 2012. McMillan's arrest, trial, sentencing, and subsequent 58 days of incarceration at Rikers Island were highly publicized, and criticized by supporters as a miscarriage of justice highlighting the prevalence of police brutality and the prison industrial complex. Since their release, McMillan has become an ardent prisoner rights advocate, highlighting the connections between poverty and incarceration. The Cecily McMillan Papers (dated 1961-2020, bulk 2007-2019) consist of materials created and collected by McMillan documenting her personal life, education, and activism, with particular emphasis on her participation in the Occupy Wall Street movement and highly publicized arrest, trial, and incarceration. Materials include journals, correspondence, ephemera, meeting notes, photographs, research materials, and publications from Rikers Island. Additionally, there are personal materials such as diplomas, graduation programs, photographs, and correspondence.
Biographical Note
Cecily McMillan (she/they, born 1988) is an activist and prisoner rights advocate. She was a participant in the Occupy Wall Street momement (OWS), and was arrested and convicted of felony second-degree assault during an incident at an OWS protest in Zuccotti Park on March 17, 2012. McMillan's arrest, trial, sentencing, and subsequent 58 days of incarceration at Rikers Island were highly publicized, and criticized by supporters as a miscarriage of justice highlighting the prevalence of police brutality and the prison industrial complex. Since their release, McMillan has become an ardent prisoner rights advocate, highlighting the connections between poverty and incarceration. McMillan's writing has appeared in The New York Times and AlterNet. Their memoir The Emancipation of Cecily McMillan was published by Bold Type Books in 2016, and includes materials from their time as a student activist at The New School in 2011 through their work following their release from prison. As of 2024, McMillan is working for an organization called Queer Equity.
Arrangement
This collection has been arranged into 3 series, as follows:
Series I. Personal
Series II. Trial and Incarceration
Series III. Activism
All of the series are arranged chronologically.
Scope and Contents
The Cecily McMillan Papers (dated 1961-2020, bulk 2007-2019) consist of materials created and collected by McMillan documenting her personal life, education, and activism, with particular emphasis on her participation in the Occupy Wall Street movement and highly publicized arrest, trial, and incarceration. McMillan's journals, notes, and collected printed ephemera document their engagement with the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement, including meetings and planning sessions. Their arrest, trial, and incarceration at Rikers Island in 2014 is extensively documented in this collection, and includes materials from their trial and sentencing; correspondence with attorneys; correspondence with family, friends, and other individuals expressing solidarity during their incarceration; handbooks and other administrative documents created by the New York City Department of Correction; and notes and journals documenting their daily routine while incarcerated at Rikers. These materials document not only McMillan's experiences and the impact of her incarceration on her wellbeing, employment, and housing situations, but also the administrative and bureaucratic aspects of incarceration, such as how individuals can communicate with others, what they are allowed to be in possession of, and many other aspects of daily life. Materials in this collection also reflect McMillan's broad activism and prisoner rights advocacy through collected zines and printed ephemera. This collection also documents McMillan's early life, education, life after her release, and the impact of her incarceration on her physical and mental wellbeing. These materials include correspondence, photographic prints, and high school and college course materials.
Subjects
Donors
Conditions Governing Access
Materials are open without restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
This collection is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use materials in the collection in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, date; Cecily McMillan Papers; TAM 807; box number; folder number or item identifier; Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives, New York University.
Location of Materials
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by Cecily McMillan in February 2022; the accession number associated with this gift is 2022.018.
Born-Digital Access Policies and Procedures
Advance notice is required for the use of computer records. Original physical digital media is restricted. An access terminal for born-digital materials in the collection is available by appointment for reading room viewing and listening only. Researchers may view an item's original container and/or carrier, but the physical carriers themselves are not available for use because of preservation concerns.
Appraisal
One box of personal effects of the donor's family were appraised out of the collection and returned to the donor in April 2022. However, in order to document McMillan's life outside of her arrest, many of her personal records were retained, including personal photographs, Organization of Staff Analysts hat, high school diploma and commemorative box, college yearbook, sorority sash, recommendation letters, graded assignments, and ticket stubs.
About this Guide
Processing Information
At the time of accessioning, materials were rehoused in archival folders and boxes, maintaining the original order established by the donor. When possible original folder titles have been transcribed onto new archival folders. Loose materials were foldered in their original order.
One folder of letters from other incarcerated individuals to McMillan during her incarceration at Rikers Island showed evidence of water damage and mold; it was cleaned by the Preservation Department and returned.
At the time of processing, materials were arranged into series. Documents were removed from non-archival sleeves, and oversized materials were unfolded and housed in appropriate sized boxes and/or flat file folders. Redacted copies have replaced materials with sensitive personal information. Financial materials (pay stubs, receipts, blank forms, bills, bank statement), duplicate publications and documents, publications available online, maps, and pamphlets on local service providers were removed. Born-digital items have been forensically imaged, analyzed, and described. New York University Libraries follow professional standards and best practices when imaging, ingesting, and processing born-digital material in order to maintain the integrity and authenticity of the content.
