National Abortion Rights Action League Records, 1981-1994
Collection Overview
Title: National Abortion Rights Action League Records, 1981-1994
ID: OGLMC1308
Primary Creator: National Abortion Rights Action League (1969-)
Extent: 2.0 Linear Feet
Date Acquired: 06/19/1995
Subjects: Health and Medicine - Abortion, Women's History - Women's Organizations
Languages: English
Scope and Contents of the Materials
The NARAL records are arranged alphabetically by folder title, then chronologically. Most materials are from the early 1990s. A significant amount concerns the political sphere, with files on individual North Dakota congressmen, elections and conventions, election questionnaires, endorsement/support questionnaires and voter's guides.
The collection also contains information on the North Dakota chapter, its members, meeting information, and minutes (1990-1994). Included are pamphlets, correspondence, newspaper clippings, Planned Parenthood Newsletters (1989-1992), Reproductive Rights Publications (1989-1992), and Washington Memo Newsletters (1992-1994).
Collection Historical Note
The National Abortion Rights Action League (NARAL), a non-partisan grass-roots political organization was founded in 1969. It educates Americans, helps elect pro-choice candidates, and works for policies that enable women and men to make responsible decisions about sexuality, contraception, pregnancy, childbirth, and abortion.
The North Dakota Chapter of NARAL began in Fargo in the early 1980s, when it formed a board and began having regular meetings. However, due to diminishing funds, the chapter soon decided to elect a president instead of a paid director. Lynn Gifford served as its first president. During her term, Fargo Women's Health was embroiled in controversy. Anti-abortionists chained themselves to radiators, laid down on the clinic driveway, and noisily disrupted the clinic's work. So much of the chapter’s regular monthly meetings were taken up with the clinic's legal battles and legislation that it was unable to complete the original paperwork needed for the national organization.
The National Abortion Rights Action League continued to extend the deadlines, but in the early 1990s, finally asked the North Dakota Chapter to disaffiliate. Activists in North Dakota were few, and it was too difficult to maintain the organization with little support. After disbandment, the Chapter's treasury was distributed to the Women's Network of the Red River Valley, the YWCA Shelter, and to the Rape and Abuse Crisis Center.
Subject/Index Terms
Administrative Information
Repository: Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections
Access Restrictions: Open for inspection under the rules and regulations of the Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections.
Acquisition Source: Gini Duval, Fargo, North Dakota
Acquisition Method: Donation; 95-2022
Separated Materials: The 1991 and 1992 editions of: Who Decides? A State-by State Review of Abortion Rights, published by the NARAL Foundation have been separated and cataloged for in the Special Collections Stacks.
Preferred Citation: (Description of Item). National Abortion Rights Action League Records. OGLMC 1308, Box #, Folder #. Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections, Chester Fritz Library, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks.
Finding Aid Revision History: Finding aid added to Archon in April 2014.
Box and Folder Listing
Browse by Box:
[Box 1],
[Box 2],
[All]
- Box 1
- Folder 1: Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Abortion: A Call to Deliberate, September 1990
- Folder 2: Abortion Control Act
- Folder 3: Abortion Service in the U.S., 1984-1985
- Folder 4: Affiliate Listing and Information
- Folder 5: Agendas, 1989-1993
- Folder 6: Annual Meeting Plans, 1990 and 1992
- Folder 7: Annual Plan, 1991-1992
- Folder 8: Annual Report, 1988-1989
- Folder 9: Anti-Abortion Publications
- Folder 10: Anti-Racism/Anti-Oppression Trainers
- Folder 11: Arguments on Legal Abortion
- Folder 12: Articles, 1985-1991
- Folder 13: Birth Control
- Folder 14: BARAL
- Folder 15: Board of Directors, 1990-1991
- Folder 16: Board Orientation Manual, 1988
- Folder 17: Brochure Samples
- Folder 18: Buttons
- Folder 19: Campaign Training School
- Folder 20: Candidate Guidelines, 1990
- Folder 21: Candidate Questionnaire, 1990
- Folder 22: Certificate of Incorporation, 1990
- Folder 23: "Choice Action" House Party
- Folder 24: Clinic/Dr. Terrorism
- Folder 25: Clinic Information
- Folder 26: Coalition Information
- Folder 27: Congressional Record on Choice, 1992
- Folder 28: Congressional Votes, 1988-1990
- Folder 29: Conrad, Kent
- Folder 30: Correspondence, 1989-1993
- Folder 31: Criminal Proceedings - Gifford, Lynn, 1992
- Folder 32: De Moss Foundation Ads, 1992
- Folder 33: Director's Report, 1990
- Folder 34: Dorgan, Byron
- Folder 35: Election Calendar, 1992
- Folder 36: Election/Convention, 1990-1992
- Folder 37: Elector Guide for NARAL Action Corps
- Folder 38: Endorsement/Support Questionnaire, 1990
- Folder 39: Events, 1990-1993
- Folder 40: Fact Sheets
- Folder 41: Feminist Majority Foundation
- Folder 42: Finance, 1989-1993
- Folder 43: Freedom of Choice Act
- Folder 44: Fundraising
- Folder 45: Guidelines for Escorts, 1991
- Folder 46: Heigaard, Bill
- Folder 47: History
- Folder 48: House Bills, 1991
- Folder 49: Informed Consent Agreement Surveys
- Folder 50: Intellingencer, 1992
- Folder 51: Job Descriptions and Evaluations
- Folder 52: Jokes
- Folder 53: Lambs of Christ
- Folder 54: Laurent, Norvell M.
- Folder 55: Legislative Lists and Committees, 1989-1991
- Folder 56: Legislative Testimony, 1990-1991
- Folder 57: Legislature - North Dakota, 1989-1994
- Folder 58: Letterhead
- Folder 59: Letter Samples
- Folder 60: Letters to the Editor
- Folder 61: Lobbying
- Folder 62: Logo
- Folder 63: Magazines, 1989-1992
- Folder 64: Major Donor, 1991
- Folder 65: Maxwell, Liz
- Folder 66: Membership
- Folder 67: Minutes, 1990-1994
- Folder 68: Mobilize for Women's Lives, 1989
- Folder 69: NARAL Supported Candidate Ads
- Folder 70: National Action Corps Day
- Folder 71: National Organization of Women
- Folder 72: National Women's Reproductive Health Call-In Day
- Folder 73: Nationwide Chapters
- Folder 74: Network News, 1993
- Folder 75: Newspaper Clippings
- Folder 76: Newspaper Clippings
- Folder 77: Newsletters - NARAL, 1991-1992
- Folder 78: North Dakota Chapter
- Folder 79: Operation Rescue, 1991-1992
- Folder 80: Organizational
- Folder 81: Organizations List
- Folder 82: Parental Rights
- Folder 83: Personnel, 1989-1993
- Folder 84: Phone Bank Script and List
- Folder 85: Photographs, 1991
- 13 photographs of a demonstration outside the Women's Health Center in Fargo
- Folder 86: Picketing Ordinances
- Folder 1: Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Abortion: A Call to Deliberate, September 1990
- Box 2
- Folder 1: Planned Parenthood
- Folder 2: Planned Parenthood Newsletters, 1989-1993
- Folder 3: Pledge/Volunteer Information
- Folder 4: Political Committee, 1990-1992
- Folder 5: Posted Activists
- Folder 6: Presidential Candidates Positions, 1992
- Folder 7: Press Coverage
- Folder 8: Public Affairs Division
- Folder 9: Questionnaires (blank)
- Folder 10: Rally Day, 1990
- Folder 11: Reading List
- Folder 12: Religious Coalition
- Folder 13: Reproduction Choice
- Folder 14: Reproductive Freedom News, 1992-1993
- Folder 15: Reproductive Rights Manual, 1990
- Folder 16: Resolutions Committee, 1992
- Folder 17: The Righteous Rhetoric of the Anti-Abortion Movement: Nostalgia for Lost Hegemony, Hansel, Mark
- Folder 18: RU-486
- Folder 19: Rutgers, 1989
- Folder 20: Senate Bills, 1991
- Folder 21: Sinner, George
- Folder 22: Song Sheet
- Folder 23: Spaeth, Nick
- Folder 24: Staff
- Folder 25: Standards for Affiliation
- Folder 26: State-by-State Review, 1991
- Folder 27: State Directors Report, 1989-1990
- Folder 28: State Legislative Program Plan, 1990
- Folder 29: Students
- Folder 30: Supreme Court
- Folder 31: Voters Guides, 1990
- Folder 32: Voter Identification, 1991
- Folder 33: Washington Memo Newsletter, 1992-1993
- Folder 34: Wentz, Janet
- Folder 35: Winning with Choice
- Folder 36: Women of Color Retreat, 1990-1993
- Folder 37: Women's Literature
- Folder 38: Women's Political Caucus - North Dakota, 1989-1992
- Folder 39: Women's Where: Clothes for a Cause, 1993
- Folder 1: Planned Parenthood
Browse by Box:
[Box 1],
[Box 2],
[All]