Scope and Content Note
The papers of Linda Lou Chavez (1947- ) and Christopher Carl Gersten (1947- ) span the years 1889-2011, with the bulk of the material dating from 1983 to 2001. Their papers are organized separately and arranged by type of material within their respective files. A majority of the material relates to Chavez and largely consists of photographs, clippings, and her newspaper columns.
The professional file of Chavez's papers covers four areas of her career. The largest group of material relates to her service at the White House during the administration of Ronald Reagan. Chavez’s notebooks include entries for staff meetings, meetings with individuals and organizations, and lists of things to do. There is a gap from June 18 to September 23, 1985. Staffing memoranda contain presidential remarks and material relating to the Economic Policy Council and Domestic Policy Council. Her scrapbook contains photographs of White House events and meetings, memorabilia, and the later addition of items from the funeral of Reagan in 2004. Chavez resigned her White House position to seek the United States Senate seat from Maryland. She won the Republican nomination, but lost the 1986 election to Democrat Barbara Mikulski. Related items include her campaign prospectus, correspondence, photographs from a fund raiser attended by Reagan, and a scrapbook containing clippings, memorabilia, and photographs of other fund-raising events. Material relating to her earlier work at the United States Commission on Civil Rights is mostly comprised of clippings with a small amount of correspondence. In 2001, President George W. Bush nominated Chavez for secretary of labor. She later withdrew after a controversy arose over the supposed employment at her home of an undocumented immigrant. A confirmation packet, questionnaire, and a large amount of clippings document her nomination and withdrawal. Items supplementing the professional file include her appointment calendars, although many are overlapping and have gaps, a personnel file kept by Chavez, a file compiled on her by Federal Bureau of Investigation, and a photograph file chronicling her career.
Chavez's speeches consist mostly of background material and printouts of testimony given by her before congressional committees. A majority of her writings consist of photocopies and printouts of her newspaper columns. Background material, contracts, publicity, and the draft of a chapter relate to her book, An Unlikely Conservative: The Transformation of an Ex-Liberal.
The papers of Christopher Gersten are mostly comprised of two photograph albums probably related to his tenure as director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement of the Department of Health and Human Services. The albums document a Tet celebration in Orange County, California, and a dinner and awards ceremony of the Unified Vietnamese Community Council.