CORE founder James Robinson on Clarence Funnye, Harlem CORE chairman (1964-65)

Harlem CORE chairman

This is a segment of my interview with James Robinson, one of the founders of CORE. He was 90 years old at the time of this interview in 2009.
Here, he speaks on Harlem CORE chairman Clarence Funnye who he worked closely with and was described as a favorite.
The audio was captured using a hand held micro cassette recorder, so is not of the best quality.

LEJ Rachell

LEJ Rachell

LEJ Rachell

2009

LEJ Rachell

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en

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new york city, 2009

Department of Justice documents showing surveillance of CORE demonstrations, 1963

These are Department of Justice documents indicating that CORE was under daily surveillance. They show that on any given day, the DOJ were keeping tabs on CORE demonstrations across the United States in 1963. New York on some days would have as many as eight different demonstrations around the city. This was CORE at its zenith. This also demonstrates how CORE was constantly under surveillance, whether as a civil rights group or a Black Power group.

Department of Justice

justice.gov

Department of Justice

1963

public domain

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1963

COINTELPRO report (first two pages)

Black revolution, Black Power

These are the first two pages of the FBI's COINTELPRO (counter intelligence program) report. I have included these two pages because they show how the FBI categorized CORE as a Black extremist organization/ hate group and thereby a threat to the internal security of the United States. These pages confirm that CORE, after they moved to Harlem, was not only under surveillance by federal law enforcement agencies but they were also targeted as domestic terrorists, as were Dr. King and the Black Panthers.

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

http://www.icdc.com/~paulwolf/cointelpro/cointel.htm

Federal Bureau of Investigation

1968

public domain

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en

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1968

photo of Harlem CORE member Doris Innis

Harlem CORE members

This is a xeroxed photo of Harlem CORE, Doris Innis, Her work is highly significant in terms of the documentation of Harlem CORE's history and philosophy.
She was the editor for all of its publications, from its earliest newsletters, 'New York CORE Action', to its in-house journal, 'Rights and Reviews'. She was the editor for the earliest issues of CORE magazine in the 1970's and for its book, 'Profiles in Black: Biographical Sketches of 100 Living Black Unsung Heroes'.
'In real life', her career was in publishing. She also wrote several pieces for newspapers such as the New York Times and the Baltimore Afro-American and magazines such as Life.

The photo is from a 1968 CORE event, the first annual "Evening of Brotherhood", a dinner/cocktail party attended by representatives from several African nations and American Black leaders . According to the Amsterdam News, this was 'the first time a Black organization has sponsored a significant African and Afro-American gathering".

Austin Hansen

Austin Hansen collection

Schomburg Library/ NYPL

1970's

Austin Hansen

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New York City, 1968

Victor Solomon's paper, 'An Independent Board of Education for Harlem'.

Harlem CORE chairman, documents

This is a copy of Victor Solomon's paper, 'An Independent Board of Education for Harlem' as published in Urban Affairs Review (the September 1968 issue). Solomon was one of the principal architects of Harlem CORE's proposal before the New York State Legislature to create an independent Board of Education for Harlem. This proposal would eventually evolve into the proposal accepted by the 1972 National Black Political Convention to create an all Black Board of Education. CORE would eventually create their own (short lived) community school in the late 1970's in the south Bronx.

Victor Solomon

Urban Affairs Review, Sept . 1968

Urban Affairs Review

Sept. 1968

Victor Solomon

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Harlem, 1968

photo of Duane 'Dog' Chapman, of the reality TV show "Dog, the Bounty Hunter", at a CORE ceremony

CORE in the 21st Century

This is a photo of Duane 'Dog' Chapman, of the reality TV show "Dog, the Bounty Hunter", at a CORE ceremony. In 2007, he gained a different type of notoriety for referring to his son's Black girlfriend as a 'nigger' more than a half dozen times in a single phone call.

Gerald Peart

core-online.com

CORE

2008

Gerald Peart

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new york city, 2008

photo of Harlem CORE member Susan Wells and her husband

Harlem CORE members

This is a photo of Harlem CORE member Susan Wells and her husband, John, in their Manhattan apartment. Susan was a member of the Executive Committee and served as the executive secretary for Gladys Harrington.
She joined CORE when she was approximately 18 years old. The first person she met was Jocelyn Boyd (Jerome) at National CORE who she is still friends with today. Susan sat in at Governor Rockefeller's office with Gladys Harrington in the 1963 protests, participated in both the Route 40 Freedom Rides and Freedom Highways campaign and the early housing protests in Brooklyn, among others.
According to Sheila Michaels, currently " She is an officer on the board that oversees American Friends' schools in the New York area".
http://crmvet.org/nars/orallist.htm

LEJ Rachell

LEJ Rachell

2009

LEJ Rachell

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new york city, 2009

photo of Harlem CORE member Evie Rich, with her husband, Marv Rich

Harlem CORE members

This is a photo of Dr. Evelyn Rich, PhD (more commonly known as Evie Rich) and her husband Marv Rich. Mrs. Rich was an early member of New York CORE from the mid-1950's and stayed with the chapter briefly after it moved to Harlem. Marv was the Community Relations Director in the national office, second only to the national director, James Farmer.

Both also participated in the Route 40 Freedom Rides.

LEJ Rachell

LEJ Rachell

LEJ Rachell

2009

LEJ Rachell

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New York City, 2009

photo of Harlem CORE member Sonia Sanchez

Harlem CORE members

This is a still from the documentary 'Eyes on the Prize' of well known poet Sonia Sanchez (and NYU alumni), who was an early Harlem CORE member during the Gladys Harrington tenure. She attended the March on Washington and saw Malcolm X speak in Harlem as a member of Harlem CORE. Her membership pre-dates her work as a poet during the Black Arts movement.

unknown photographer

http://thewriterscenter.blogspot.com/2008/09/happy-birthday-sonia-sanchez.html

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photo of Harlem CORE member St. Claire Bourne

Harlem CORE members

This is a photo of the Harlem born documentary film maker, St. Claire Bourne, who was a member of Harlem CORE in the late 1960's (and perhaps early 1970's?). He organized Black film festivals with Harlem CORE to help raise funds for the group. He also filmed much of the school protests , especially IS 201, that were organized by Harlem CORE. I am still looking for this film.
Bourne was also a member of the Students' Afro-American Society (SAS) at Columbia University and involved in the takeover of Hamilton Hall in 1968.

unknown photographer

http://www.amigosdeboliviayperu.org/rpcvDeceased/Bourne2.jpg

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