Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Access Restrictions

The collection is open to research.

Preferred Citation

Juanita White Papers, 1970-1997, bulk 1970-1986, Collection # M 354, Special Collections and Archives, James Branch Cabell Library, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated by Juanita White in 2005.

Processing Information

Originally processed in 2006. In 2020, the collection was rehoused for preservation purposes and series were condensed to facilitate better access. The finding aid was updated in accordance with DACS standards.

Biographical Information

Juanita White (1924-2013) was a feminist and founding member of the Richmond branch of the National Organization for Women (NOW). Born in 1924, White served as an aircraft inspector at the Air Force Depot in Memphis, Tennessee, during World War II. After the war, she worked as a research analyst with the North Carolina Medical Care Commission in Raleigh, North Carolina. She then moved to Richmond, Virginia, and taught English and Latin in Chesterfield County from 1970 to 1984 and English as a Second Language from 1985 to 1991.

As a member of NOW, White participated in group events such as protests and lobby efforts and served as the Richmond branch's officer of reproductive rights. In 1983 she attended the National NOW Conference as a delegate. She also volunteered as the Richmond NOW newsletter editor. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, White participated in the activities of the ERA Ratification Council in unison with NOW to promote the benefits of the Equal Rights Amendment. She died on August 10, 2013.

Scope and Contents

The Juanita White Papers, 1970-1997, consists of the personal files and publications used by Juanita White while participating in feminist organizations in Richmond. The papers provide insight into White's involvement in the National Organization for Women and other feminist causes in the Richmond area.

White's personal files include her daybooks and correspondence which detail the meetings, protests, and rallies she attended between 1975 and 1986. The collection includes the contents of a scrapbook compiled by White, detailing her feminist career in newspaper clippings and photographs. Additionally, the collection contains a small selection of feminist music owned by White such as the LP record Leave the Breads a-Burning! as performed by a local women's caucus. Also included is a selection of images of sculptures by Eleanor Lawrence, on display at the First Unitarian Church in Richmond, Virginia at the time of being photographed.

The bulk of the collection is comprised of feminist publications and promotional material for causes she participated in such as National Organization for Women (NOW) and the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) Ratification Council. The NOW publications include national and regional newsletters, national conference programs, and ERA task force reports and promotional fliers created in conjunction with NOW. The publications not related to NOW consist primarily of sporadic issues of smaller Virginian feminist newsletters such as the Equal Rights Monitor and The Blue Lantern .

Arrangement

The collection is arranged into three series: Series 1: Personal Files, 1970-1991, bulk 1970-1986. Series 2: National Organization for Women Files, 1972-1984. Series 3: Feminist Publications, 1974-1997, bulk 1974-1979.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Equal rights amendments -- History -- 20th century. -- United States
• National Organization for Women
• White, Juanita
• Women political activists -- Archives -- Virginia -- Richmond
• Women's rights -- History -- 20th century -- United States