Selma, Lahore, Warsaw, Santiago … “Records of Resistance: Documenting Global Activism 1933 to 2021,” Princeton University Library’s latest exhibition opening September 7, captures continuity and change in practices of protest and activism in diverse geographic contexts and around issues that may be particular to an area or of universal concern. The exhibition includes images that range from sacred Passover Haggadot that embody Jews’ spiritual resistance to their oppressors during and immediately after the Holocaust, to dramatic photographs of marchers on Selma’s Edmund Pettus Bridge in 1965, to vibrant posters and pamphlets created by protesters taking to the streets of Santiago, Chile and Lahore, Pakistan only a few years ago.

The exhibition depicts resistance through familiar and trusted tools and technologies – posters, pamphlets, and flyers. Visitors will also encounter new ways of disseminating dissent as activists harness the power of the internet and social media to make their voices heard. “Records of Resistance” considers how issues of perennial concern including indigenous, gender, and LGBTQIA+ rights, social inequality, antisemitism, and systemic racism manifest in resistance over time and across the globe.

This exhibition calls attention to the extraordinary material available on Digital Princeton University Library. The site has been created for the presentation and curation of digital images of Princeton University Library’s collections, and is accessible to everyone around the world. We invite you to further explore the digital collections at dpul.princeton.edu. 

"Records of Resistance: Documenting Global Activism 1933 to 2021" curators are Fernando Acosta-Rodriguez, Ellen Ambrosone, Will Clements, David Hollander, and Gabrielle Winkler.