George Lister Papers, 1887-2004 (bulk 1936-2003)

Biographical Sketch

George Lister, who has been referred to as “Mr. Human Rights,” was born in Chicago on September 20, 1913, and was a graduate of the College of the City of New York. He married Aleta Bierschwale Lister in 1948, and was divorced in 1970. Lister served in the United States Department of State for sixty years, and throughout his career he championed human rights and the importance of human rights as a tool for fighting Communism. He worked during the 1950s and 1960s as a Foreign Service Officer with appointments in Warsaw, Moscow, Germany, Columbia, and most notably, in Italy (1957-1961) as Embassy First Secretary. Mr. Lister played a major role in establishing contact with the Italian Socialists and persuading them to disassociate themselves from the Communist party.

In the 1970s Mr. Lister worked with Congressmen Don Fraser and Tom Harkin to establish human rights as an important goal of United States foreign policy, and in 1974 George Lister became the first Human Rights Officer ever appointed to the Department of State’s Bureau of Inter-American Affairs. In 1981 Lister officially retired but gained successive appointments as an Unpaid Expert and Consultant in the Bureau of Humanitarian Rights and Humanitarian Affairs, which later became the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. In addition to acting as a consultant, Lister spoke on behalf of the Department of State to universities, colleges, and other organizations, published essays on United States policy and human rights, and met with numerous student groups and foreign dignitaries.

George Lister received formal recognition for his work in the form of several awards, including one from the government of Chile in 1992, one from the U.S.-Baltic Foundation in 1996 for “his outstanding work as the State Department’s Baltic Country Officer,” and an award from the United Nations in 1998. In 1997 he was nominated for, but did not receive, the Warren Christopher Award. Despite his success, George Lister often met with resistance from within the State Department. He fought and managed to survive numerous attempts to expel him from the State Department up until 2003. George Lister, who battled Parkinson’s disease at the end of his life, succumbed to aspiration pneumonia on February 21, 2004.

Sources: Remembrance and Celebration of the Life of George Lister; Personal and Biographical--General--Resumes

Scope and Contents Note

Biographical records, correspondence, written works, speeches, printed materials of activities and organizations, collected materials, photographs, audio recordings, and a video cassette, 1887-2004, document the life and works of human rights advocate George Lister. The papers are divided into eight record series, including a collection of correspondence, written works, materials related to activities and organizations, and collected materials that details the life and work of Aleta Bierschwale Lister.

The first series,    Biographical and Personal (1936-2003), includes records of George Lister’s marriage and divorce, and the deaths and funerals of his mother Frances E. Lister, and his sister, Frances T. Lister. Materials regarding Lister’s life and health insurance policies, as well as those of his mother and sister, are present as well. Records in this series additionally document Lister’s health, housing arrangements, finances, and works written about him.

The second series,    Correspondence (1948-2003), documents the professional and personal relationships and activities of George Lister. Major correspondents include Elliot Abrams, Harold Koh, Jim Montgomery, Michael Parmley, William Rogers, Charles Runyon, Richard Schifter, John Shattuck, the United States Department of State, and the Washington Office on Latin America. Correspondence is arranged alphabetically. Also included is correspondence not written by or to Lister, followed by two minor subseries, Addressee Unknown and Author Unknown.

Series III,    Written Works (1953-2001), consists of George Lister’s essays, reports, interviews, speeches and handwritten notes, as well as several documents which Lister is suspected to have authored.

The fourth series,    Activities and Organizations (1943-2003), is divided into three major subseries: General, Travel, and United States Department of State. The bulk of these records reside in the United State Department of State subseries, and include George Lister’s employee records, resumes and performance/efficiency reviews.

Series V,    Collected Materials (1887-2004), constitutes about half of the collection and therefore the bulk of the George Lister papers and consists of a General sub-series arranged alphabetically, and a Miscellaneous sub-series. Included here are materials collected and kept by Lister related to his personal and professional interests.

The sixth series,    Audiovisual Materials (c.1950-2001), includes six small sub-series: Audio Recordings, Video, Computer Media, Photographs, Oversized, and Miscellaneous.

Series VII is the    Aleta Lister Papers (1944-2001), and consists of the correspondence, written works, and collected materials of Lister's ex-wife Aleta Lister, as well as of records of Aleta Lister’s activities and organizations.

The eighth and final series is    Declassified Materials. This series contains previously restricted or classified documents. A portion of these records currently are not present in the collection as they are pending declassification review. The arrangement of the declassified series imitates the arrangement of the rest of the George Lister Papers--they are divided into correspondence, written works, activities and organizations, etc. As more documents complete the declassification review process they will be integrated into this series.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions

A portion of the George Lister Papers is not available to researchers pending declassification review. For more information contact the archivist at the Benson Collection.

Use Restrictions

Standard copyright restrictions apply.

Related Material

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Cite as: George Lister Papers, Benson Latin American Collection, University of Texas Libraries, the University of Texas at Austin.

Acquisition Note

The George Lister Papers were acquired by the Benson Collection and the University of Texas Libraries with the participation of the Bernard and Audre Rapoport Center for Human Rights and Justice at the University of Texas School of Law.

Box and Folder Inventory