Alaska State Commission for Human Rights Celebrates Alaska’s Civil Rights Heroes with Graphic Novel and Trading Cards (corrected to note the artist is Alaskan and add images) March 24, 2025 The Alaska State Commission for Human Rights (“ASCHR” or the “Commission”) released a graphic novel and a set of trading cards that celebrate the stories of Alaska civil rights leaders. The graphic novel, created in part by combining ASCHR’s outreach grant funds from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission with similar funds given to the Anchorage Equal Rights Commission, contains three stories: William Paul’s efforts to obtain voting rights for Alaska Natives after his mother and uncle were denied the right to vote; Elizabeth and Roy Peratrovich’s struggle, inspired in part by the teenaged Alberta Schenck’s forcible removal from a “whites only” section of a Nome theater, leading to the Anti-Discrimination Act of 1945; and the 97th Engineer Battalion’s perseverance through segregation to build the Alaska Highway. All these stories are beautifully illustrated by Alaskan artist, Elyse Applegate, resulting in an exciting graphic novel ideal for upper elementary students through to early high school. “These stories belong to all of us—they are Alaska’s legacy of courage, conviction, and change. We honor them so the next generation knows the power they carry,” said Dorene Lorenz, ASCHR Chairperson. The set of trading cards feature twenty trailblazers in Alaska’s civil rights history. This list includes Willard Bowman, the first executive director of the Commission who is also the namesake of Bowman Elementary School in Anchorage; Mildred Hermann, a delegate to the constitutional convention who argued for equality among the sexes; Sadie Neakok, the first female magistrate and organizer of the Barrow Duck-In; and Thelma Buchholdt, the first Filipina American legislator anywhere in the country. These cards, featuring photographs, biographical information, and quick facts on their subjects, were designed to spread awareness of lesser-known civil rights leaders within the state. In the coming weeks, the Commission plans to send copies of both projects to school principals across Alaska. “All too often, the history of civil rights is boiled down to just Rosa Parks and Brown v. Board of Education,” said Rob Corbisier, the Commission’s Executive Director. “We’re hoping that the graphic novel and trading cards can serve as a resource for teachers in Alaska and help make kids excited about our unique civil rights history.” Low-resolution versions of both projects are available on the Commission’s website suitable for printing by teachers in the classroom and for homeschool students. The graphic novel file can be found at https://humanrights.alaska.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/ASCHR-Graphic-Novel-Vol.-1.pdf. The printable trading card file can be found at https://humanrights.alaska.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Printable_ASCHR_Cards-5.pdf. Both will also be distributed at the Commission’s many outreach events in the coming months. The Commission will make the high-resolutions files available if any organization wants to print copies professionally. If you would like to receive the high-resolution files or have copies of either project mailed to you directly, please contact the Commission’s Special Projects Attorney, Alex Roider, at alexander.roider@alaska.gov. The Commission is an independent quasi-judicial state agency that aims to eliminate discrimination and support Alaskans when they face discrimination in the workplace, places of public accommodation, housing, credit and financing, and government practices. The Commission consists of seven volunteers who are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the legislature for rotating five-year terms. The Commission consists of Chairperson Dorene Lorenz (Juneau), Vice Chairperson Jessie Ruffridge (Kenai), William Craig (Sitka), Rebecca Carrillo (Juneau), Zack Gottshall (Anchorage), and Shiela Cernich (Anchorage). The seventh seat is currently vacant. Commission staff is available for assistance directly to the business community, either through speaking engagements to organizations, reviewing non-discrimination policies and procedures, and providing copies of its guidance documents, which are also available on its website: https://humanrights.alaska.gov/publications/other-aschr-publications/ For more information about the agency, please visit https://humanrights.alaska.gov. To talk about discrimination experiences directly to an investigator, call (800)-478-4692 or (907)-274-4692.