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Cleveland Robinson Papers

Call Number

WAG.006.001

Date

1956-1992, inclusive

Creator

Robinson, Cleveland L. (Cleveland Lowellyn), 1914-1995
Distributive, Processing, and Office Workers of America. District 65 (Role: Donor)

Extent

17 Linear Feet (17 boxes)

Language of Materials

English .

Abstract

Cleveland Robinson (1914-1995) was an African American trade union leader and civil rights activist who served as Secretary-Treasurer of the United Auto Workers of America, District 65, from 1952-1992. The collection contains correspondence, miscellaneous documents, ephemera and clippings.

Historical/Biographical Note

Cleveland Robinson was born in 1914 in Swabys Hope, a rural parish of Jamaica. After serving as a local constable and an elementary school teacher, he emigrated to the United States in 1944. On arrival he took a job in a Manhattan dry goods store and very soon became active in District 65, Distributive Workers. After organizing his own shop in 1947, he went on to become a steward, and then a full-time organizer for the union. He was elected vice-president in 1950 and secretary-treasurer in 1952, a position he held until his retirement in 1992. During the period when District 65 was affiliated with the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Workers Union (RWDSU), Robinson held the positions of international vice-president and executive board member of that union. After longstanding disagreements with the RWDSU about the pace of organizing in the South and efforts to reach minority workers, District 65 pulled out and organized the National Council of Distributive Workers of America; Cleveland Robinson was elected president of the new body. District 65 finally affiliated with the United Auto Workers (UAW) in 1981. At that time the union was comprised of 33,000 members, one half of whom were women, and one third minority workers; it had locals in 37 states, Canada and Puerto Rico.

A close associate of A. Philip Randolph, Robinson was founding member and vice-president of the Negro American Labor Council; he assumed the presidency of the 40,000-member NALC when Randolph retired in 1966. In 1971 he helped to found the Council of Black Trade Unionists, successor organization to the NALC, and served as its first vice president.

In addition to his union activity, Cleveland Robinson was a stalwart of the civil rights movement. He was administrative chairman and one of the key organizers of the August 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. A friend and advisor on labor matters to Martin Luther King, Jr., he was an active member of the National Urban League and the NAACP, a director of the Southern Christian leadership Council, and a trustee of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center in Atlanta, GA. He was also a leader in the struggle to mobilize American opposition to apartheid in South Africa and supported movements for labor and human rights in many African nations. He sat on the steering committee of the American Committee for Africa, and served as Commissioner of the New York City Commission for Human Rights during the administrations of Mayors Wagner and Lindsay. As co-chair of the committee that organized Nelson Mandela's visit to New York City in 1990, he spearheaded a massive fund-raising campaign among the city's trade unions to defray the expenses of the event. At the time of his death he was chair of the New York State Martin Luther King, Jr., Commission, which worked toward having King's birthday declared a legal holiday and sponsors observances of the day and educational programs focusing on civil rights throughout the state each year. He was the recipient of New York State's Martin Luther King, Jr. Medal of Freedom in 1987 and the Eugene V. Debs/Norman Thomas Award of the New York Democratic Socialists of America in 1984.

His first wife was Sue Eliza Robinson, a department store worker and member of District 65; and they had two sons and a daughter. After her death in 1976 he married again, Doreen McPherson Robinson. He suffered severely from glaucoma for many years, and was considered legally blind by 1970; but his level of commitment and activity was in no way impaired by this disability. He never lost touch with his Jamaican origins and traveled to the island often, keeping up a keen interest in a number of Jamaican-American political, cultural and fraternal organizations. Cleveland Robinson died of kidney failure in New York City in August 1995.

Arrangement

The folders in each series are arranged alphabetically.

Organized into two series:

Missing Title

  1. 1. UAW, District 65 Files, 1956-1992
  2. 2. General and Political Files, 1960-1992

Scope and Content Note

Series 1. UAW, District 65 Files, 1956-1992, includes a wide range of documentation of every aspect of union affairs: organizing files, grievances, bargaining records, financial reports, benefits files, legal records, and officers' and members' correspondence. Also documented are the union's extensive educational and cultural programs, and its special interest in organizing in the South. Series 2. General and Political Files, 1960-1992, provides a detailed picture of Robinson's political interests and affiliations. Included are records of his involvement in African affairs, anti-apartheid campaigns, the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists, the King Center in Atlanta, New York City and state human rights and civil rights commissions, and a wide range of smaller campaigns and organizations. Also included is his correspondence with leading political and cultural figures, trade unionists, and personal friends, as well as letters from ordinary workers, both in the U.S. and in Jamaica.

Conditions Governing Access

Materials are open without restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

Any rights (including copyright and related rights to publicity and privacy) held by the United Automobile Workers of America, District 65 were transferred to New York University in 1996 by the UAW, District 65. Permission to publish or reproduce materials in this collection must be secured from Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Archives. Please contact tamiment.wagner@nyu.edu, (212) 998-2630.

Preferred Citation

Published citations should take the following form:

Identification of item, date; Cleveland Robinson Papers; WAG 006.001; box number; folder number;
Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
Elmer Holmes Bobst Library
70 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012, New York University Libraries.

Location of Materials

Materials are stored offsite and advance notice is required for use. Please contact tamiment.wagner@nyu.edu at least two business days prior to research visit.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated by the United Automobile, Aircraft, and Vehicle Workers of America. District 65, in 1992, at the time of Cleveland Robinson's retirement and the dissolution of District 65 into ten separate locals within the UAW. The accession number associated with this gift is 1992.005.

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, (212) 998-2630 with the collection name, collection number, and a description of the item(s) requested. A staff member will respond to you with further information.

Related Material at the Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives

United Automobile Workers of America, District 65 Records (WAG 006)

United Automobile Workers of America Oral Histories (OH 019)

United Automobile Workers of America Photographs (PHOTOS 023)

Collection processed by

Ted Casselman and Gail Malmgreen, 2000-2001. Folder contents for Box 15, Folder 4 revised by Hillel Arnold, March 2009.

About this Guide

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-08-20 16:44:04 -0400.
Using Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language: Description is in English

Edition of this Guide

This version was derived from robinson template.doc

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