PRESERVING THE LEGACY OF
RAINBOW SIGN
Rainbow Sign, an iconic, Berkeley-based Black cultural and community arts center was founded and run by Mary Ann and Henry Pollar, Odette’s parents. Odette maintains the legacy of Rainbow Sign, including a large archive, and is available for interviews, panel conversations, or archival information.
Active between 1971-1977, Rainbow Sign offered diverse classes, workshops, services, exhibits, and performances. Known as a “a Black table at which everyone is welcome to eat”- it had a restaurant, concert hall and art gallery, offered gathering spaces for community groups, and was an incubator for creative and political thought. From nurturing local talent to hosting some of the biggest literary and musical names of the time (James Baldwin, Nina Simone, Maya Angelou, and Odetta were all regulars), Rainbow Sign was a truly unique space in the radical milieu of 1970s Bay Area.
It’s an energy...It floats in the air. In other places people overhear the performers. In this room, they listen. I don’t know what explains it, but here it’s more than just someone standing on a stage.
Mary Ann Pollar
select articles about rainbow sign
KQED - March 2023
Berkeley Public Library - February 2021
KQED - August 2022
The Concert Promoter Who Founded Berkeley’s Legendary Rainbow Sign
KQED - August 2022
Berkeley Public Library - February 2021
KQED - August 2022
Remembering The Rainbow Sign: The Short But Powerful Reign of Berkeley's 1970s Black Cultural Center
Berkeley Public Library - February 2021
Berkeley Public Library - February 2021
Berkeley Public Library - February 2021
Tarea Hall Pittman Social Justice Series: The Legacy of Rainbow Sign
SLATE - February 2020
Berkeley News - September 2017
Berkeley Public Library - February 2021
Where Kamala Harris' Political Imagination Was Formed -
The Short, Influential Life of Rainbow Sign
Berkeley News - September 2017
Berkeley News - September 2017
Berkeley News - September 2017
Inside Rainbow Sign, a vibrant hub for Black cultural arts
SF Chronicle - February 2019
Berkeley News - September 2017
Berkeley News - September 2017
Black Cultural Center of the 70s Stands out in Oakland Museum exhibit
I remember the feeling of Rainbow Sign. It was like walking into somebody’s home. It was very friendly and warm and welcoming. It was a big place but it was always bustling — always something going on. It was fun. Everybody was very accessible.”
Odette Pollar
