Collection Guide
Collection Title:
Collection Number:
Get Items:
Aptheker (Bettina) papers
MS.157
View entire collection guide
Search this collection
Table of contents
Contributing Institution:
University of California, Santa Cruz
Title: Bettina Aptheker papers
Creator:
Aptheker, Bettina
Identifier/Call Number: MS.157
Physical Description:
47.5 Linear Feet
40 document boxes, 27 half cartons, 11 cartons, 3 flat boxes, 1
half document box
Physical Description:
0.304 GB
122 digital files
Date (inclusive): 1935-2022
Abstract: The Bettina Aptheker papers contain
biographical material, correspondence, instructional materials, research notes, grant
proposals, writings, speeches, lectures, and material concerning her political activism,
including the Free Speech Movement and the trial of Angela Y. Davis. Aptheker is a professor
of feminist studies, political activist, and author.
Language of Material:
English .
Collection open for research. Audiovisual media is unavailable until reformatted. Digital
files are available in the UCSC Special Collections and Archives reading room. Some files
may require reformatting before they can be accessed. Technical limitations may hinder the
Library's ability to provide access to some digital files. Access to digital files on
original carriers is prohibited; users must request to view access copies. Contact Special
Collections and Archives in advance to request access to audiovisual media and digital
files.
Inital purchase from Bettina Aptheker in 1997. Additional accruals donated by Aptheker in
2009, 2015, 2020, and 2022.
The Bettina Aptheker papers are organized into eight series:
- Series 1. Biographical Material
- Series 2. Correspondence
- Series 3. Writings
- Subseries 3.1 Instructional Material
- Subseries 3.2 Grant Proposals
- Subseries 3.3 Writings and Research
- Subseries 3.4 Speeches and Interviews
- Series 4. Activities
- Subseries 4.1 Activism
- Subseries 4.2 Conferences and Workshops
- Subseries 4.3 Women's Studies
- Series 5. Clippings and Newspapers
- Series 6. Angela Y. Davis Trial
- Subseries 6.1 Trial Correspondence
- Subseries 6.2 Manuscripts
- Subseries 6.3 Related Material
- Series 7. Photographs and Slides
- Series 8. Non-Print Materials
| 1944 September 2 | Bettina Fay Aptheker born in Fort Bragg, North Carolina to Fay Phillippa Aptheker, a life-long activist and member of the U.S. Communist Party, and Herbert Aptheker, member of the U.S. Communist Party and a prominent Marxist historian in African American history. |
| 1958-1962 | Attends Erasmus Hall High School, Brooklyn, New York |
| 1962 Fall | Moves to California to attend the University of California at Berkeley |
| 1964 September - 1965 April | Serves on the steering committee which led the Free Speech Movement (FSM) at UCB |
| 1965 August 29 | Marries Jack H. Kurzweil on Long Island, NY |
| 1967 June | Graduates from the University of California at Berkeley with an A.B. in History |
| 1967 Summer | While seven months pregnant serves sentence at the Santa Rita Prison Farm for conviction stemming from FSM activity |
| 1967 October 19 | Son Joshua Mark born |
| 1971 March | National United Committee to Free Angela Davis and all Political Prisoners (NUCFAD) begins its work |
| 1971 September | If They Come in the Morning: Voices of Resistance (co-edited with Angela Y. Davis) published in England |
| 1971 December | If They Come in the Morning: Voices of Resistance (co-edited with Angela Y. Davis) published in the United States |
| 1971-1972 | Works as legal investigator in the defense of Angela Y. Davis |
| 1972 | The Academic Rebellion in the United States: A Marxist Appraisal published |
| 1972 February 23 | Angela Y. Davis released on bail |
| 1972 February 28 | Angela Y. Davis murder and conspiracy trial begins |
| 1972 June 4 | Trial ends with "not guilty" verdicts on all counts |
| 1974 | The Morning Breaks: The Trial of Angela Davis published |
| 1974-1975 | Assistant Instructor, Speech-Communication, San Jose State University |
| 1975 January 14 | Daughter Jennifer born |
| 1976 June | Master's Degree in Speech Communication from San Jose State University |
| 1976-1979 | Lecturer, Women's Studies, San Jose State University |
| Instructor, Speech/Drama, San Jose State University | |
| 1978 April | Separates from Jack Kurzweil, who agrees to a divorce |
| 1978 Spring | Teaches (as a lecturer) her first Women's Studies class at the University of California at Santa Cruz |
| 1978 Summer | Attends the (for her) "life changing" 4th Berkshire Conference on the History of Women |
| 1978 Fall | Lecturer, Afro-American Studies, San Jose State University |
| 1979 Summer | Moves with her children to Santa Cruz |
| 1979 Fall | Starts on a Ph.D. track in the History of Consciousness program at UCSC |
| 1979 October 19 | Meets her life partner, Kate Miller, at a Holly Near concert at the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium |
| 1980-1987 | Lecturer, Women's Studies, UCSC |
| 1981 October 19 | Resigns from the Communist Party |
| 1982 | Women's Legacy: Essays on Race, Sex, & Class in American History published |
| 1983 March | Doctorate in the History of Consciousness, UCSC |
| 1983 Fall | Comes "out" as a lesbian instructor |
| 1987-1989 | Assistant Professor of Women's Studies at UCSC |
| 1988 | Gets tenure at UCSC |
| 1989-1997 | Associate Professor of Women's Studies at UCSC |
| 1989 | Tapestries of Life: Women's Work, Women's Consciousness and the Meaning of Daily Experience published |
| 1993 Fall | Takes bodhisatva vows in Tuscon, Arizona |
| 1993-1995 | Takes a sabbatical from UCSC, followed by a leave |
| 1996 June | Chancellor Karl Pister authorizes the establishment of Women's Studies as a Department at UCSC |
| 1997 | Becomes Professor of Women's Studies at UCSC |
| 1997 May 29 | Excellence in Teaching Award, UCSC |
| 1999 January | Her mother, Fay Aptheker, dies |
| 1999 | The Morning Breaks: The Trial of Angela Davis published with a new Introduction and Afterward |
| 2001 | Receives the Alumni Association's Distinguished Teaching Award |
| 2003 March | Her father, Herbert Aptheker, dies |
| 2006 | The autobiographical Intimate Politics: How I Grew Up Red, Fought for Free Speech, and Became a Feminist Rebel published |
| 2008 | Introduction to Feminist Studies course lectures releases on 17 disc DVD set |
| 2012 | Co-appointed with Karen Yamashita to the UC Presidential Chair in Feminist Critical Race and Ethnic Studies |
| 2017 | Receives the John Dizikes Teaching Award in Humanities |
| Inaugural appointee of the endowed Peggy and Jack Baskin Foundation Presidential Chair for Feminist Studies | |
| 2018 | Retires from UC Santa Cruz |
| 2022 September | Publishes Communists in Closets: Queering the History 1930s- |
| 2023 October | Receives the UCSC Ethos Award for her commitment to social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion |
Bettina Aptheker (1944-) is a professor of feminist studies, political activist, and
author. Both of her parents were political activists and members of the U.S. Communist
Party. Her father, Herbert Aptheker, was a prominent Marxist historian in African American
history and author. Aptheker's first job was in W.E.B. Du Bois' home. Her father was Du
Bois' friend and literary executor. Aptheker attended the University of California, Berkeley
from 1962-1967 and received her A.B. in History. While at UC Berkeley, she was an activist
in the W.E.B. Du Bois Club of the Communist Party USA and a leader in the Berkeley Free
Speech Movement. In the 1970s, Aptheker worked for the defense in Angela Y. Davis' murder
and conspiracy trial. Aptheker wrote a book about the trial,
The Morning Breaks: The
Trial of Angela Davis
, which was published in 1974.
In 1965, Aptheker married Jack Kurzweil and they had two children together. They divorced
in 1978. Aptheker has been with her wife, Kate Miller, since 1979.
Aptheker completed her masters degree in Speech Communication at San Jose State University
in 1976 and was a Women's Studies and African American Studies lecturer there until
1979.
In 1979, Aptheker began her Ph.D. in the History of Consciousness program at University of
California, Santa Cruz, which she completed in 1983. In 1980, she was the sole lecturer in
the Women's Studies Program at UCSC and began teaching WMST 101, Introduction to Feminism.
By 1987, she became the department's first ladder-rank faculty member. In 2008, her
Introduction to Feminism Studies lectures were released in a 17 DVD set. Aptheker was
co-appointed with Karen Yamashita to the UC Presidential Chair in Feminist Critical Race and
Ethnic Studies at UCSC in 2012 and in 2017 she was the inaugural appointee of the endowed
Peggy and Jack Baskin Foundation Presidential Chair for Feminist Studies. Aptheker retired
in 2018.
Bettina Aptheker Papers. MS 157. Special Collections and Archives, University Library,
University of California, Santa Cruz.
Processed by UCSC OAC Unit in March 2008. EAD encoded finding aid by Mathew E. Simpson,
2007, updated in 2014 by M. Carey. Multiple additions from 2009-2022 processed by Zoe
MacLeod in 2024.
- CU-309, Free Speech Movement Records, 1936-1969, UC Berkeley, University Archives
- UARC PIC 24B, Free Speech Movement Photographs Collection, 1964-1984, bulk 1964, UC Berkeley, University Archives
- Special Collections M0308, Angela Davis Trial, 1972-1974, Stanford University, Manuscripts Division
- Special Collections M1032, Herbert Aptheker, 1842-1999, Stanford University, Manuscripts Division
- BANC MSS 99/281 c, Meiklejohn Civil Liberties Institute Archives, Bancroft Library, UC Berkeley
Scope and Content of Collection
The Bettina Aptheker papers contain biographical material, correspondence, instructional
materials, writings, speeches and lectures, and material concerning her political
activism.
The biographical material contains date books, material related to her education, and
awards and diplomas. The collection also contains correspondence related to the Free Speech
Movement (FSM), Aptheker's Communist Party membership, Angela Davis' trial, Aptheker's
publications, appreciation from students, and personal and family correspondence.
The material related to Aptheker's writings includes her articles, essays, manuscripts, and
research material. Also included are grant proposals, transcripts of her speeches and
interviews, and teaching materials, such as course outlines, bibliographies, lecture notes,
and syllabi.
The collection also contains material related to Aptheker's activism, particularly her
involvement in the Communist Party, the Free Speech Movement, and Angela Davis' trial.
Also included in the collection are newspaper clippings used for research, photographs,
slides, and audio visual material.
Copyright for the items in this collection is owned by the creators and their heirs.
Reproduction or distribution of any work protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair
use requires permission from the copyright owner. It is the responsibility of the user to
determine whether a use is fair use, and to obtain any necessary permissions. For more
information see UCSC Special Collections and Archives policy on Reproduction and Use.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Women's studies -- California -- Santa
Cruz
Free Speech Movement (Berkeley,
Calif.)
Women -- Social conditions
Women college teachers
Faculty papers
Davis, Angela Y. (Angela Yvonne),
1944-
Aptheker, Bettina
University of California, Santa Cruz. Feminist Studies
Department