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Occupy Wall Street Archives Working Group Records

Call Number

TAM.630

Date

2011-2013, inclusive

Creator

Roberts, Amy (Role: Donor)
Occupy Wall Street. Archives Working Group. (Role: Donor)

Extent

145.5 Linear Feet
in 33 oversize flat boxes, 15 flat file folders, 19 custom boxes, 4 record cartons, 2 manuscript boxes, 2 media boxes, and 1 oversize tube box

Extent

51 Megabytes
in 47 graphics

Extent

1 CD

Language of Materials

Materials are in English.

Abstract

The Occupy Wall Street Archives Working Group was created in October 2011 by Amy Roberts and Jeremy Bold to collect and preserve material related to the Occupy Wall Street protest in the fall of 2011 in Manhattan, New York. The Archives Working Group (AWG) continued to collect materials related to other Occupy protests in 2012 and 2013, as well as climate change and racial justice protests. The Occupy Wall Street Archives Working Group Records document protests by the Occupy movement between 2011 and 2013, and the work of the AWG to collect materials from these protests. The collection also documents the beginning of the AWG through mission statements, draft budget proposals, meeting agenda, and minutes. The bulk of the collection documents the first Occupy Wall Street protest in the fall of 2011 in Zuccotti Park in Manhattan through posters, artwork, fliers, clippings from print and online news sources, letters of support, diaries, born-digital photographs, buttons, textiles, organizational documents, and the movement's newsletter, The Occupied Wall Street Journal.

Historical Note

The Occupy Wall Street Archives Working Group was created in October 2011 by Amy Roberts and Jeremy Bold to collect and preserve material related to the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) protest in the fall of 2011 in Manhattan, New York. The Archives Working Group (AWG) was created to enable the movement to document itself and ensure that materials from the movement would be made available to the public. The AWG collected records of the movement in all formats, and documented the decisions of the OWS General Assembly, Spokes Council, and other working groups. The AWG continued to collect materials related to other Occupy protests in 2012 and 2013, as well as climate change and racial justice protests held in New York City during those years.

Arrangement

Materials are arranged by type of document. The container list is arranged in alphabetical order.

Posters collected on specific dates are listed in chronological order by collection date, with descriptive information about each sign included in the inventory. Posters without a documented date of collection are not arranged, but are housed according to size and material type.

Discussion documents are arranged in alphabetical order by discussion topic. The remaining organizational documents are not arranged, but are housed according to size.

Scope and Contents

The Occupy Wall Street Archives Working Group Records document protests by the Occupy movement between 2011 and 2013, and the work of the Archives Working Group (AWG) to collect materials from these protests. The bulk of the collection documents the first Occupy Wall Street (OWS) protest in the fall of 2011 in Zuccotti Park in Manhattan, New York. Other documented events include climate change and racial justice protests in New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. Materials include posters, ephemera, artwork, correspondence, clippings, periodicals, diaries, a map, a compact disc, digital photographs, notebooks, organizational documents, and periodicals.

The bulk of the collection consists of material collected by members of the AWG in order to document the New York City Occupy protest in 2011. The majority of this material consists of posters and ephemera created by members of the movement in Zuccotti Park in 2011. In addition to the posters and ephemera, the AWG also collected letters of support, artwork, clippings, periodicals, diaries, notebooks, digital photographs, a map, and a compact disc. The posters and ephemera document the main issues of the movement, in particular income inequality, wealth distribution, and the influence of corporations on the government. The ephemera includes fliers, pamphlets, clippings, textiles, buttons, and stickers. The letters of support were sent by friends and family of the protestors, supporters from across the country, and one seventh grade social studies class in New Jersey. The clippings include articles from print and online news sources about the protest. The periodicals include the movement's publication, The Occupied Wall Street Journal and Occupy!, which includes articles written by members of the movement and other activists and was published by the n + 1 foundation. The artwork includes small and large-scale plywood, masonite, drywall, metal, and fabric paintings, sculptures, and props created by members of the protest. These items include messages similar to the posters and ephemera. The diaries contain personal entries and meeting notes created by unidentified members of the Occupy movement. The notebooks were found in Zuccotti Park after a raid on the protesters by the New York Police Department in November 2011 and collected by members of the AWG. The map is of a route the protestors may have used in lower Manhattan, in the area surrounding Zucotti Park. The digital photographs depict protesters and police officers, and the compact disc contains the song "People's Park".

Material documenting the AWG is physically housed with the organizational documents and includes mission statements, draft budget proposals, meeting agenda, minutes, and notes. The bulk of the AWG records consist of notes taken by Amy Roberts at AWG meetings, with other material consisting of budget proposals presented to the OWS General Assembly and notes on collecting oral histories and archives best practices.

Material documenting the work of the General Assembly and other working groups are also physically housed with the organizational documents. These include a draft vision statements, a "Declaration of the Occupation of New York City", meeting agenda and notes, discussion documents, informational signs, and notes taken by Roberts at working group meetings. In addition to the AWG, the Music Working Group and other unspecified working groups are documented in the collection. The discussion documents consist of large, rolled sheets of paper with a general topic of discussion and related topics written on the paper.

Conditions Governing Access

Open to users without restriction, with the exception of textiles, select artwork, and signs larger than 24" x 36".

Conditions Governing Use

Any rights (including copyright and related rights to publicity and privacy) held by the Occupy Wall Street Archives Working Group, the creator of this collection, were relinquished and transferred to the public domain in 2013 by Amy Roberts. These materials are governed by a Creative Commons CC0 license, which permits publication and reproduction of materials accompanied by full attribution. See, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/

Preferred Citation

Identification of item, date; Occupy Wall Street Archives Working Group Records; TAM 630; box number; folder number; Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives, New York University.

Location of Materials

Some materials are stored offsite and advance notice is required for use. Please request materials at least two business days prior to your research visit to coordinate access.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated by Amy Roberts of the Occupy Wall Street Archives Working Group, 2013, 2017, and 2019. The accession numbers associated with these gifts are 2013.010, 2013.022, 2017.048, 2017.077, and 2019.079. Materials associated with the collection were found in repository in April 2014. The accession number associated with this material is 2014.096.

Custodial History

Materials were collected by Amy Roberts of the Occupy Wall Street Archives Working Group in 2011 and transferred to the Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives in 2013 and 2017. Materials associated with collection were found in the repository in April 2014 and were accessioned at that time.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

Textiles, select artwork, and signs larger than 24" x 36" require conservation treatment before they can be made available to researchers.

Audiovisual Access Policies and Procedures

Audiovisual materials have not been preserved and may not be available to researchers. Materials not yet digitized will need to have access copies made before they can be used. To request an access copy, or if you are unsure if an item has been digitized, please contact tamiment.wagner@nyu.edu with the collection name, collection number, and a description of the item(s) requested. A staff member will respond to you with further information.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

Advance notice is required for the use of computer records. 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

In 2017, duplicate fliers and periodicals were deaccessioned.

In May 2018, the following materials were deaccessioned from the collection: foam letters, clothing, drums and drumsticks, candles, markers, heat blankets, and zip-tie handcuffs. Also removed were posters with duplicative, general, or personal messages; abstract artwork; blank cardboard; and extremely dirty or damaged posters.

Collection processed by

Megan O'Shea

About this Guide

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2024-02-06 14:04:10 -0500.
Using Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language: Finding aid written in English

Processing Information

In August 2017, 17 items were prepared to be moved to offsite art storage in September 2017.

In September 2017, the ephemera, letters of support, diary, organizational documents, periodicals, and some posters were housed in archival folders and boxes. Materials were kept in the broad categories in which they were arranged when received from the donor.

In December 2017, the placards, signs, drums, and textiles were surveyed. In May 2018, this material was cleaned by staff from the Barbara Goldsmith Preservation & Conservation Department. In July 2018, materials were kept intellectually in the broad categories in which they were arranged when received from the donor and incorporated into the existing arrangement. Materials were housed in archival folders and boxes, and housed together according to material type and size.

In January 2018, additional ephemera, letters of support, diaries, organizational documents, periodicals, and posters were housed in archival folders and boxes. Materials were kept in the broad categories in which they were arranged when received from the donor and incorporated into the existing arrangement.

One CD-R was forensically imaged and mounted to local storage. A directory was created for one collection of graphics files.

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.

In August 2021, item-level description of 54 items was added to the finding aid.

Revisions to this Guide

August 2017: Updated by Megan O'Shea to incorporate artwork being sent to offsite art storage in September 2017
September 2017: Updated by Megan O'Shea to incorporate collection description and processed materials
July 2018: Updated by Megan O'Shea to reflect housing of posters
March 2019: Updated by Megan O'Shea to reflect incorporation of posters found in repository
July 2019: Updated by Rachel Searcy to reflect January 2019 accretion
August 2021: Edited by Amy C. Vo to include item-level description of materials

Repository

Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
Elmer Holmes Bobst Library
70 Washington Square South
2nd Floor
New York, NY 10012