Fonds AR453 - Ann Hansen fonds

Title and statement of responsibility area

Title proper

Ann Hansen fonds

General material designation

  • Multiple media

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Title statements of responsibility

Title notes

  • Source of title proper: Title is based on the content of the fonds.

Level of description

Fonds

Reference code

CA UVICARCH AR453

Edition statement

Edition statement of responsibility

Class of material specific details area

Statement of scale (cartographic)

Statement of projection (cartographic)

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Statement of scale (architectural)

Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)

Dates of creation area

Date(s)

  • 1973 - 2007 (Creation)
    Creator
    Hansen, Ann, 1953-

Physical description area

Physical description

2.1 m of textual records and other materials

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Archival description area

Name of creator

(1953-)

Biographical history

Ann Hansen is a Canadian anarchist, born in Ontario in 1953. Her early interest in anti-authoritarian activities led her to Europe, where she studied urban guerrilla groups as a part of the University of Waterloo's Integrated Studies department. Upon her return to Canada, she became active with the prison-abolition movement, including the production of Bulldozer magazine.

In the early 1980s, Hansen formed the guerrilla organization, Direct Action (later also known as the Vancouver Five or the Squamish Five), in Vancouver with Julia Belmas, Gerry Hannah, Doug Stewart, and Brent Taylor. Direct Action's major activities occurred in 1982; the bombing of the Cheekey-Dunsmuir BC Hydro substation on Vancouver Island in May, and the bombing of the Litton Industries factory in Toronto in October. Direct Action also participated in the collective Wimmin's Fire Brigade firebombing actions against the Red Hot Video pornographic video store outlets in BC. The group were arrested in January 1983 on the highway near Squamish, BC; "Free the Five" rallies were organized in their support and to raise awareness of alleged biased media reporting concerning the trial. Direct Action members were sentenced to life in prison in June 1984; all members have completed their sentences and have been released. Hansen has since published Direct Action: Memoires of An Urban Guerrilla (Between the Lines Press, 2001), and co-authored, with Julie Belmas, This Is not A Love Story: Armed Struggle Against the Institutions of Patriarchy (2002; available for download from http://TheAnarchistLibrary.org).

Custodial history

Scope and content

The fonds consists of the following series: Direct Action-related clippings, correspondence, ephemera and notes; legal correspondence; pre- and post-parole correspondence, ephemera, notes and writings by others; correspondence received during incarceration; prison records (supplied to Hansen under an Access to Information request); Direct Action chapter drafts and related materials; and RCMP surveillance transcripts (closed until 2072).

Subject matter of the mixed clippings and correspondence series includes: anti-nuclear/anti-cruise missile activism, court proceedings, Elizabeth Fry Society, environmental issues, indigenous peoples issues, international activism, pornography, anti-pornography/anti-snuff films, prison-industrial complex, sexual assault, Red Hot Video, the Vancouver Five trial matters and sentencing, women's rights. Correspondence received during incarceration series includes: correspondence from Brent Taylor, Janice Bear Neudorf, and various supporters and publishers; series also includes 1 box of previous sealed letters from other members of the Vancouver Five, primarily Brent Taylor.

Notes area

Physical condition

Immediate source of acquisition

Donated by Ann Hansen in 2008.

Arrangement

Language of material

Script of material

Location of originals

Availability of other formats

Restrictions on access

RCMP surveillance transcripts (wiretap transcripts) closed until 2072.

Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication

Finding aids

Finding aid available with folder level control.

Generated finding aid

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Accruals

General note

Part of the Anarchist Archive.

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Description record identifier

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Rules or conventions

Status

Revised

Level of detail

Partial

Dates of creation, revision and deletion

Created by JF, July 21, 2020.

Language of description

  • English

Script of description

Sources

Accession area

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