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Stories from the Cold War...
During the 1970s, 80s, and 90s, the Pacific Northwest was home to an outpouring of citizen diplomacy, peace activism, and cultural exchange, directed towards building personal connections with the Soviet Union and reducing the risks of war.
This website is part of an ongoing project, based at the University of Washington, to preserve and retell some of the stories from this rich history of grass-roots, person-to-person action.
Featured Exhibits
The Goodwill Games and the Political Climate of the Cold War Era

How the Cold War political climate created the Goodwill Games and the inescapable nature of politics in the time period.
Amerika: Entertainment or Propaganda?

In 1987, ABC produced a miniseries entitled, Amerika. The plot of the show revolved around three major characters, all of...
Seattle Jewish Human Rights and Peace Activist Groups

On the map above, there are several marked places that represent the locations where Jewish human rights groups protested Soviet...
Michale Gabriel: The Journey of Storytellers for Peace, and the Foundations for Accent on Understanding

Educational Exchanges: Accent on Understanding's Impact on the Future

Accent on Understanding was a non-profit, 501(c)(3)-designated organization in Washington from 1987 to the early 2000s that facilitated teacher and...
New Opportunities: Europe America Space Flight 500

In 1991, the collapse of the Soviet Union signaled the end of the Cold War and changed the landscape of...
Public Tenacity: Give Peace a Dance

Background: In 1983, a new push from Seattle peace activists emerged in order to resolve geopolitical tensions between the Soviet Union...
Seattle Peace Activism

A Seattle peace activist group travels to Tashkent to advocate for peace and unity during the Cold War. However, this...