Principled life of a civil rights advocate
581779
Insightful presentation of a grandson's relationship with his accomplished and much admired grandfather. Jules Browde's long life bore witness to South Africa's transformation from apartheid to democracy; and the principled role he played as an advocate for civil rights, grounded in the rule of law.
4441744
Morris Dees was born to a sharecropper family. Rising from white Southern poverty, Mr. Dees went to law school and became a fighter for justice on behalf of the poor.

I have met Mr. Dees. He was the keynote speaker at my law school graduation. His Southern Poverty Law Center once assisted my Firm on a case when it turned out that one of our opponents was an active Klansman.

Mr. Dees is passionate about his work with the SPLC, and its "Klanwatch" which has expanded to monitor all domestic hate groups. This book discusses several of Mr. Dees' more high-profile and more personally meaningful cases. It's an important document that sheds light on an aspect of our national character that brings out the worst in many and the best in some like Mr. Dees and his associates.
1757066
Julius Lester's strong emphasis on sexuality throughout the book is his attempt to get to the real truth behind individual motivation combined with real personal skills, such as John Calvin Marshall's eloquence or Robert Card's steadfastness.  Lester writes from both female and male viewpoints on what makes one tick, while never straying from the objective facts of the situation, in this case a variation on Martin Luther King's approach to garnering equality for all.  Professor Lester strongly places in Marshall's words that discrimination oppresses all and only equality can make individual people free.  Focusing on black only or white only denies the fullness of life.  In a nutshell, Julius Lester, in his writing, is a classical liberal desiring freedom for all, not rights nor attitudes based on truly irrelevant concerns like skin color and superficial identity.  John Calvin Marshall tried to move his people and all people beyond that, but had to deal with his own non-rational impulses.
3849405
As one who was raised primarily in the south, in the hometown of Dr King, withal of my family being from the south, I heard a range of opinions about Dr King and his killer.  I have also seen some significant and welcome changes in the views of race and race relations over the course of my life so far.  This is an important recounting of the final days of Dr King's life, a view into his priorities as he moved toward the end of the 1960s.  It also shows the shrinking influence of the movement after his death.

Finally, we are shown the inside story of the manhunt for James Earl Ray, the small man who ended the life of a historical giant.

Well written, interesting and insightful.  Well worth the investment of time and money.
3637794
Read this book if you're interested in knowing the political leadership qualities needed today because you will be encouraged, inspired, and guided. It will encourage you because this memoir of a several term Senator and Congressman  demonstrates a person from a humble background can achieve the extraordinary  while  also seeing how mentoring parents, teachers and professors can contribute to molding leaders.
Senator Larry Pressler demonstrated a strong moral compass during the Abscam scandal that was rooted in a belief that the rule of law supersedes political self interest. It will therefore inspire as it demonstrates a person with this moral compass, combined with a humble even self depreciating attitude, can succeed while making a positive contribution to a government continuously in need of moral reawakening
It will guide you by demonstrating the people we need to call to national leadership.  People with an allegiance to the greater good who are willing to subordinate self and even political party interests to doing what's right. Once more, it's well written and fun to read!
John A.  Knubel

Franklin Tennessee
January 6, 2016
45953
A white woman in the middle of Harlem, in an all black part of town, 12 children, 2 husbands (one dead), and no family to turn too. Could you live that life? Ruth was a strong white woman who struggled and made it through  many problems in  her life. She had a father who molested her as a child,  racism, she married a black man, that led to her family not communicate  with her, her frist true love died and left her with eight children, and to  top it off she lived in poverty. In "The Color of Water" Ruth's  son James is interviewing and writing about her so he could find out who  "he" is and the family past. This book journeys threw Ruth  McBride Jordan's life and challenges. If you are the kind of reader who  believes in solid values and true compassion I would sugest to go out and  get this book.
2005439
This autobiography by Nichelle Nichols reflects upon her life, as a black actress, facing racism of her times and breaking them with certain amount of courage and skills. First half of the book retells the story of her life prior to Star Trek, her education, training and people whom she met, some who were helpful while others who were not. Her occasional slide into self praise is typical of many memoirs, not atypical.

But for most people who read this book, they read it because they are Star Trek fans and second part of the book don't disappointed them at all. She goes into all sort of interesting tales about her experiences in Star Trek that brought her to the forefront. Her story on how Martin Luther King talked her into staying on the show, her frustration with the limited role she was having and her relationships with her co-workers while still fighting occasional racism at the studios proves to be an set of very interesting and telling stories. She continued on with her stories on the Star Trek movies as well as her work with NASA.

Like Jimmy Doohan and George Takei books, Nichols seem to have problems with William Shatner. From the three of them, Shatner does not seem to be a very generous actor and by design or not, William Shatner often end up sounding like a self centered cad. Its interesting that almost every Star Trek actor have problems with Shatner. But she was generous enough to say that Shatner as a director of Star Trek V, was most wonderful person. Doohan and Takei had no kind words for Shatner in their books.

Intersting reading material for all Star Trek fans. Story of Nichelle Nichols proves to be one of courage and determination that marked her a very special woman. In some ways, that make the color of her skin immaterial in the end.
2900902
This is an important book about a man committed to building educational institutions for women, African Americans and students in far flung nations. He embodied the best of American idealism, and the author gives the reader a deep appreciation of a remarkable life marked by faith, wealth and service.
1978136
From Liberty to Magnolia  wow.  Ive read a lot of biographies and autobiographies, but this book hit me hard.  Dr.  Janice Ellis chronicles her life in such a clear and methodical way, it felt like I was watching her life through a window.  At times she discusses details dispassionately, like the murders and mutilations other black individuals and their supporters were subjected to as she grew up in segregated Mississippi.  At other times, she pours her heart into telling how she was not going to be limited by her circumstances.  I went into dark places with her and then soared into the light with her.
Dr. Ellis has experienced everything you would expect a black woman in the south growing up in the second half of the 20th century to experience: racism, sexism, harassment, abuse, etc.  But she took each and every obstacle and vaulted over it with air to spare.  All of those difficulties could have set her back, as they do many.  She simply wouldnt allow that, and determined early on that she was going to succeed in spite of what the world thought of who she was.  And she did.
She has led agencies, companies, organizations, and her own family with grace, even through the valleys.  Without much family support, she put herself through college, raised her kids, and got out of marriages that were unhealthy.  All of this was simply the backdrop to her steadily pursuing her dream of being somebody.
It was an honor to read her story.  It made me question what I know, and the limitations I put on myself as a woman.  I am inspired and encouraged.
4268038
This book is a moving pictorial testament to the daily life of middle class blacks in the deep South in the time of Jim Crow, as well as on the cusp of the civil rights movement.  It is a slice of black life with which most whites at the time were unfamiliar, as most photo-journalists chose to capture the more sensational types of images in the black community.
Henry Clay Anderson was a black school teacher and minister who, courtesy of the G. I. Bill, studied photography and  became a professional photographer. In 1948,  he established his own business, Anderson Photo Service, in Greenville, Mississippi, where he lived. For more than forty years, he would photograph moments in the lives of Greenville's black middle class community, forever freezing in time images of a rich life that paralleled those of their white counterparts in the Jim Crow South, separate but equal.
The book has one hundred and thirty of his photographs, memorializing a time long past but one that continues to haunt America today.  Clifton L. Taulbert, who was raised in Mississippi in a town not far from Greenville  and is the noted author of the book, "Once Upon a Time When We Were Colored", writes a poignant and moving essay in remembrance of the black denizens of Greenville, grounding the photographs in the context of the times out of which they arose. It is as if it were a walk down memory lane.
Mary Panzer, curator of photographs at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C.,  writes an essay that details Mr. Anderson's photographic involvement in the early civil rights movement,  when he agreed to go travel to Belzoni, Mississippi in 1955. Belzoni had been the scene of the grisly shooting of Rev. Gus Lee, a black civil rights activist who had been involved in voter registration efforts. Mr. Anderson's photographs memorialized the shooting and its aftermath, appearing in  magazines such as "Jet" and "Ebony", which were well known in the black community. Ms. Panzer grounds his photographs in the political context of the time, which affirm Mr. Anderson's political commitment.
There are also two essays in Mr. Anderson's own words that are culled from two interviews conducted by Daisy Greene for the Washington County Oral History Project and by Shawn Wilson, in whom the idea for this book germinated. The book is a loving tribute to Henry Clay Anderson. His legacy of photographic images  will delight and haunt those who look at them, seeing in them not only America's past but its future. This is simply a beautiful book.
4323254
A fascinating autobiography of an American civil rights hero
 This is an absorbing, firsthand account of the well-known mother of the civil rights movement and teaches us valuable life lessons that are relevant today.  Rosa Parks wonderfully describes her lifes journey, giving actual details of the unfair and inhumane treatment of her and other African Americans, including her courageous act that helped initiate the civil rights movement.  Her story provides explicit instances of racism, descriptive language (and photos) that illustrate strong emotions and lessons in courage, while encountering hatred because of the color of ones skin.  In the end, we are inspired by acts of courage, determination and unity that Rosa Parks has detailed in her story.
 Although, best known for the day she refused to give up her seat to a white man on a segregated bus, sparking the Montgomery, Alabama bus boycott, Rosa Parks life story was much more than that.  Rosa Parks tells her life story of growing up in the south in the early 1900s when racism and segregation were law.  Life was difficult for Rosa and her family, but that did not discourage her. This autobiography is a compelling account of the civil rights movement and her dedication to it.
 Throughout her story, Rosa Parks describes her experiences and firsthand accounts of racism.  At a very young age, Rosa acutely feels the difference between the treatment of blacks and whites.  Another difference between our school and the white school was that we went for only five months, while they went for nine months.  Many black children were needed by their families to plow and plant in the spring and harvest in the fall (pg. 28).  Rosa writes There were many, many cases to keep records on (pg. 84). All true accounts and heartbreaking.
 Her life experiences are written in her words and together with photos from that time, give the reader a sense of the emotions felt during that time.  People always say that I didn't give up my seat because I was tired, but that isn't true.  I was not tired physicallyno the only tired I was, was tired of giving in (pg. 116).  The reader is then able to reflect back to the previous chapters detailing Rosas experiences and understand her emotions.  Rosa narrates in a calm, direct fashion how this singular act grew out of a lifetime of being dissatisfied with any kind of disrespectful treatment.
 During a time when disobedience of segregation laws resulted in arrest or beaten, Rosa Parks courage is to say the least, admirable. The driver of the bus saw me still sitting there, and he asked was I going to stand up.  I said, no.  He said, I am going to have you arrested.  Then I said, you may do that.  As I sat there, I tried not to think about what might happen.  I knew that anything was possible.  I could be manhandled or beaten But I chose to remain (pg. 116).  It was this one defiant act of courage that gave fuel to the civil rights movement.
 It is inspiring to learn about the history of civil rights and that in the face of injustice, courage, determination and unity can bring about positive change.  I give this 5 out of 5 stars: a definite must read.
3977955
I liked the fact that Sarah was not influenced by Status or money. Nor did she succumb to the threat of being ostracized by her own family and religion. She stood for equality for all. She gave up love, and a life of aristocracy to uphold her convictions. She and her sister were Pioneers of freedom from slavery and women's sufferage.

The story encases family, traditions, cruel punishments, entitlement, compassion, love, caring for others and staying alive.
1199813
A hundred years before the 1960s' civil rights movement, Octavius Catto and his "band of brothers and sisters" fought for equal rights in Philadelphia, a city that mirrored the harsh treatment of blacks throughout the North. Although Slavery was outlawed in the North, cruelty, mob killings, and denying blacks basic rights weren't. This rich biography by Daniel Biddle, an editor of the PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER and a Pulitzer Prize recipient, and Murray Dubin, an INQUIRER reporter for thirty-four years and author of SOUTH PHILADELPHIA: MUMMERS, MEMORIES, AND THE MELROSE DINER, restores Catto to his important place in the pantheon of civil rights heroes. In Philadelphia, Catto was revered along with the great abolitionist, Frederick Douglass.

Catto was a young scholar who graduated from Philadelphia's highly regarded Institute for Colored Youth, the current Cheyney University, America's oldest historically black university. The authors provide an excellent treatment of Catto's life and the whirlwind of events that defined the bitter fight for civil rights during the Civil War era: the Fugitive Slave Law, the Dred Scott decision, John Brown's raid, and UNCLE TOM'S CABIN. Catto was an advocate for civil rights efforts; sadly, he was murdered by a Democratic Party leader who feared that the Party of Lincoln offered too much for blacks. Historians and informed general readers will be riveted by the life and times of this African American luminary whose life was cut short at age thirty-two.

THIS REVIEW APPEARED IN THE SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER ISSUE OF FOREWORD REVIEWS AND APPEARS HERE WITH PERMSISSION OF FOREWORD REVIEWS
1726116
Bob Childress was destined to be a criminal and die an early death as too many boys and young men did in his region of Southwest Virginia in the early 1900's.  However, he was able to turn his life around and, in doing so, helped turn around the lives of many.  Through his preaching and good deeds, he was able to convince countless others that there was a better way to live their lives.  As many in that area lived in poverty, he had churches, schools, and roads built and spent a lot of his time journeying to preach to different congregations and giving rides to people in need.  When I got to the page that mentioned his death, I indeed cried.  He had lived an extremely meaningful life, and I wanted to continue reading about more of his accomplishments.  I'm surprised that the Rev. Bob Childress has not had a town, county, or school named after him.  He was that great of a person.  This was a book, in my opinion, that started out slowly, but later I hoped wouldn't end.
1797440
Awesome read. A black real estate developer and mortgage banker/broker and civil rights activist that climbed through racism and illiteracy to become very influential and successful. A huge inspiration.
By offering mortgage loans to blacks in Chicago he countered housing discrimination and redlining. Hes truly an American hero and should be celebrated.
4633495
I like to read books about baseball in the summer summer, which is what I thought Arnold Rampersad's Jackie Robinson, a biography, would be primarily about, and while the author does cover Robinson's breaking the color barrier and all that he went through in his 11-year professional baseball career, this is also a book about the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s and Robinson's post-baseball life.

When he retired from baseball due to injuries and age, Robinson devoted himself to promoting equal rights for African-Americans while also pursuing various business ventures to support his family. He also got involved in politics. Rampersad helps us understand why Robinson became a Republican and a supporter of Richard Nixon, Nelson Rockefeller and other "liberal" Republicans. He also reports on the squabbles that Robinson got into with Black leaders even including Martin Luther King Jr. whose criticism of the War in Vietnam bothered Robinson.

The qualities that made Robinson the ideal person for Branch Rickey to pick to break the color barrier also made him a leader in the fight for Black equality. He was determined, focused and principled. He didn't back down from conflict, although he often foregave those with whom he quarreled.

Although he was a Republican, Robinson supported Democrats such as Humbert Humphrey when he thought their hearts were in the right place. He didn't think Blacks should tie themselves too closely to either party--a position that too few adopted.

When this book came out it added immensely to our knowledge of Robinson's life as Rampersad had access to key primary sources, including many people who are no longer with us. The book reflects the thoroughness of his research and is replete with details taken from interviews, letters and the like. It is well-written and always readable. There are times I wish the author had provided footnotes to back up certain statements, but this would be a fine choice for readers who are interested in baseball, civil rights or both.
3352088
I was looking for extra copies of this book when i typed in the name Karl Downs, and ended up spending quite a bit of time exploring Amazon's entries for him. He was my wife Myrna's uncle, and should have been as well known as Martin Luther King but for his untimely death at the hands of racism in Austin, Texas in 1948. His wife Marion's mother helped finance this book, and it was published by the Methodist Church. The book is a series of short vignettes on important Black American personalities, many of whom Karl knew personally. As a pastor in Los Angeles, Karl was the mentor for Jackie Robinson, and as the youngest college president in America at Sam Huston College in Austin, he recruited Heman Sweatt to enroll in the University of Texas Law School. Thurgood Marshall and Adam Clayton Powell would take the train to Austin and stay with Karl, Marion, and Karlene while they planned the strategy that eventually became Sweatt vs. Painter at the Supreme Court. This book, written by one of the founders of the United Negro College Fund, and one of the moving forces behind the United Methodist Church, was intended to introduce the Negro people to a broader White audience by highlighting some prominent persons who excelled in life despite great odds. It still makes a good primer for Black History Month, or serves as a gentle reminder of how well some people did in worse times.