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Photographic transparency of the Poor People's Campaign

African American Museum

There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
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Object Details

Photograph by

Robert Houston, American, 1935 - 2021

Subject of

Poor People's Campaign, American, 1967 - 1968
Unidentified Man or Men
Black Star, American, founded 1935

Caption

This slide is part of a collection of 35mm slides encapsulating Robert Houston's full portfolio of images related to the Poor People's Campaign and the antipoverty protest camp on the National Mall. Known as "Resurrection City," the camp lasted for six weeks in the spring of 1968.

Description

This photographic transparency depicts a yellow school bus parked by the curb with five men's heads protruding from side windows and one man emerging from the door. The photograph is taken from the rear right side of the bus, looking towards the front. There are two hand-made signs taped to the bus’s side, both handwritten on white paper. One, in black letters, reads "NEWARK, N.J. / VAN-GUARD/ POOR PEOPLES/ CAMPAIGN." The other sign, written in red ink reads “NEWARK, NJ." Painted in black and white script by the door's lower corner is the bus company's logo that reads "Mer (?)enthal (?)rs/ Bus Service." Five men lean out the upper half of five bus windows, looking over their right shoulders towards the viewer. Two of the men wear flat caps, and all five men wear over shirts or jackets in shades of khaki or dark blue. A sixth man in a dark blue jacket stands in the bus's open door. With the transparency was a protective plastic sleeve with a sticker on the upper left corner with both handwritten and stamped text.

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture

Date

May 21, 1968 - June 23, 1968

Object number

2015.245.288

Restrictions & Rights

© Robert Houston
Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.

Type

transparencies

Medium

reversal film

Dimensions

H x W: 1 15/16 × 1 15/16 in. (4.9 × 4.9 cm)

Place depicted

National Mall, Washington, District of Columbia, United States, North and Central America

See more items in

National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Photographs and Still Images

Movement

African American - Latinx Solidarity
Poor People's Campaign

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Topic

African American
Activism
Civil Rights
Housing
Local and regional
Photography
Politics
Poverty
U.S. History, 1961-1969

Metadata Usage

CC0

Link to Original Record

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd54d9df1f0-4def-4111-b5a0-e5ba6bdd642a

Record ID

nmaahc_2015.245.288

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