Dr. James W. Russell Oral History
Object number2022.001.0054
Date08/08/2022
ClassificationsOral Histories
Oral history interview subject
Dr. James W. Russell
Oral history interviewer
Stephen Fagin
ObjectOral history
Credit LineOral History Collection/The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza
MediumBorn digital (.m4a file), Born digital (.mp4 file), Born digital (.vtt file)
DimensionsDuration: 66 Minutes
Collections
- All Online Objects
- Oral History Collection
DescriptionVideotaped oral history interview with Dr. James W. Russell. As a student at the University of Oklahoma, Russell became active with the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) and Students for a Democratic Society (SDS). In 1964, in addition to being arrested during Tulsa sit-ins, he was instrumental in organizing a Kennedy assassination lecture at OU by attorney Mark Lane. Russell later worked in the national SDS office and was the first editor of the organization’s newspaper, New Left Notes (1966).
Interview conducted via Zoom on August 8, 2022 by Stephen Fagin. The interview is one hour and six minutes long.
Curatorial CommentaryIn 2023, Dr. Russell directed an award-winning short film, When Desegregation Came to Sand Springs, about the 1964 desegregation of the Sand Springs, Oklahoma public school system. The full half-hour film may be viewed as part of the Veterans of the Civil Rights Movement Archive: When Desegregation Came to Sand Springs. 31min. on Vimeo.
As of 2025, Dr. Russell maintains a website that includes a biography and blog, articles about the desegregation of the Sand Springs, OK public school system and his related film project, and information on his numerous books: home - James W. Russell. - Stephen Fagin, Curator
Kennedy assassination researcher and author Mark Lane (1927-2016) made a number of college appearances similar to the 1964 University of Oklahoma lecture discussed during this interview. A ninety-minute audio recording of Lane's 1964 lecture at the University of California, Los Angeles may be accessed here on the UCLA Irv and Xiaoyan Drasnin Communication Archive's YouTube channel: Mark Lane speaking at UCLA 12/3/1964. - Stephen Fagin, Curator
