Reverend Calvin Peterson and Disabled in Action Atlanta Collection


Descriptive Summary
Title: Reverend Calvin Peterson and Disabled in Action Atlanta Collection
Creator: Peterson, Calvin E.
Creator: Disabled in Action (Atlanta)
Inclusive Dates: 1967-2015
Language(s): English
Extent: 2 box(es) (0.5 linear foot, 2 oversize items, 7.4 gigabytes)
Collection Number: RBRL409
Repository: Richard B. Russell Library for Political Research and Studies
Abstract: Reverend Calvin Peterson is the founder and director of Disabled in Action, a non-profit organization with a mission to advocate, educate and empower people with disabilities living in poverty, their families and caregivers, and with an emphasis on equity and inclusion. The collection includes articles of incorporation, correspondence, press releases, news clippings, brochures, flyers, photographs, audiovisual recordings, and other materials that document Rev. Peterson and Disabled in Action's advocacy and activism.

Collection Description

Historical Note

Calvin E. Peterson was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on March 30, 1948. At birth, he was diagnosed with a severe form of cerebral palsy. He graduated from Booker T. Washington High School in southwest Atlanta. In 1978, he graduated with a B.A. in Liberal Arts from Long Island University. In 1970, Peterson and others founded the Atlanta-based organization Advanced Association for the Physically Handicapped to assist individuals with disabilities in communicating with employers, assistance agencies and rehabilitation centers, among other purposes. Since 1984, Rev. Peterson has been an ordained minister of the African Methodist Episcopal Church and has taught at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta. In 1986, Rev. Peterson founded the non-profit organization, Disabled in Action (DIA), in Atlanta with a mission to advocate, educate and empower people with disabilities living in poverty, their families and caregivers, and with an emphasis on equity and inclusion. In 1988, representing DIA, he provided testimony before the U.S. House Committee on Housing and Finance to urge public housing authorities to mandate accessibility. Among Rev. Peterson and DIA's other accomplishments are instituting disabled voter education and registration drives, fighting for sidewalk curb-cuts in low-income communities, demanding public transportation for people with disabilities living in poverty, and creating curriculum for church leaders to allow them to adequately address the needs of their congregants with disabilities. Rev. Peterson is the author of Nothing is Impossible, his autobiography. Since 1986, he has produced television programs at People TV, the City of Atlanta's public access media center, including the show Let's Plant a Seed, and currently hosts the monthly program, Voice of the Voiceless.

Scope and Content

The collection documents the work of Reverend Calvin Peterson and the organization, Disabled in Action (DIA), and includes articles of incorporation, correspondence, press releases, news clippings, brochures, flyers, photographs, audiovisual recordings, and other materials. Files include information on DIA's projects and programs, advocacy campaigns to promote inclusion of people with disabilities, particularly those living in poverty, in all aspects of society, and administrative activities. Of particular interest is Rev. Peterson's correspondence with government, community and religious leaders to advance the work of DIA at various levels.

Administrative Information

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

This collection contains digital files. To access these files, please request the folders you would like through the finding aid using your research account. An archivist will be in contact with you to explain how to access the files. Please note that not all file formats are currently supported by the library for research use.

Preferred citation

Reverend Calvin Peterson and Disabled in Action Atlanta Collection, Richard B. Russell Library for Political Research and Studies, University of Georgia Libraries, Athens, Georgia, 30602-1641.

Copyright Information

Before material from collections at the Richard B. Russell Library may be quoted in print, or otherwise reproduced, in whole or in part, in any publication, permission must be obtained from (1) the owner of the physical property, and (2) the holder of the copyright. It is the particular responsibility of the researcher to obtain both sets of permissions. Persons wishing to quote from materials in the Russell Library collection should consult the Director. Reproduction of any item must contain a complete citation to the original.