Freedom's Main Line

Freedom's Main Line PDF Author: Derek Charles Catsam
Publisher: University Press of Kentucky
ISBN: 0813138868
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 373

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Book Description
“A compelling, spellbinding examination of a pivotal event in civil rights history . . . a highly readable and dramatic account of a major turning point.” —Journal of African-American History Black Americans in the Jim Crow South could not escape the grim reality of racial segregation, whether enforced by law or by custom. In Freedom’s Main Line: The Journey of Reconciliation and the Freedom Rides, author Derek Charles Catsam shows that courtrooms, classrooms, and cemeteries were not the only front lines in African Americans’ prolonged struggle for basic civil rights. Buses, trains, and other modes of public transportation provided the perfect means for civil rights activists to protest the second-class citizenship of African Americans, bringing the reality of the violence of segregation into the consciousness of America and the world. Freedom’s Main Line argues that the Freedom Rides, a turning point in the Civil Rights Movement, were a logical, natural evolution of such earlier efforts as the Journey of Reconciliation, relying on the principles of nonviolence so common in the larger movement. The impact of the Freedom Rides, however, was unprecedented, fixing the issue of civil rights in the national consciousness. Later activists were often dubbed Freedom Riders even if they never set foot on a bus. With challenges to segregated transportation as his point of departure, Catsam chronicles black Americans’ long journey toward increased civil rights. Freedom’s Main Line tells the story of bold incursions into the heart of institutional discrimination, journeys undertaken by heroic individuals who forced racial injustice into the national and international spotlight and helped pave the way for the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Freedom's Main Line

Freedom's Main Line PDF Author: Derek Charles Catsam
Publisher: University Press of Kentucky
ISBN: 0813138868
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 373

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Book Description
“A compelling, spellbinding examination of a pivotal event in civil rights history . . . a highly readable and dramatic account of a major turning point.” —Journal of African-American History Black Americans in the Jim Crow South could not escape the grim reality of racial segregation, whether enforced by law or by custom. In Freedom’s Main Line: The Journey of Reconciliation and the Freedom Rides, author Derek Charles Catsam shows that courtrooms, classrooms, and cemeteries were not the only front lines in African Americans’ prolonged struggle for basic civil rights. Buses, trains, and other modes of public transportation provided the perfect means for civil rights activists to protest the second-class citizenship of African Americans, bringing the reality of the violence of segregation into the consciousness of America and the world. Freedom’s Main Line argues that the Freedom Rides, a turning point in the Civil Rights Movement, were a logical, natural evolution of such earlier efforts as the Journey of Reconciliation, relying on the principles of nonviolence so common in the larger movement. The impact of the Freedom Rides, however, was unprecedented, fixing the issue of civil rights in the national consciousness. Later activists were often dubbed Freedom Riders even if they never set foot on a bus. With challenges to segregated transportation as his point of departure, Catsam chronicles black Americans’ long journey toward increased civil rights. Freedom’s Main Line tells the story of bold incursions into the heart of institutional discrimination, journeys undertaken by heroic individuals who forced racial injustice into the national and international spotlight and helped pave the way for the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Law, Crime and Deviance since 1700

Law, Crime and Deviance since 1700 PDF Author: David Nash
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1472585291
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 345

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Book Description
CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title 2017 Law, Crime and Deviance since 1700 explores the potential for the 'micro-study' approach to the history of crime and legal history. A selection of in-depth narrative micro-studies are featured to illustrate specific issues associated with the theme of crime and the law in historical context. The methodology used unpacks the wider historiographical and contextual issues related to each thematic area and facilitates discussion of the wider implications for the history of crime and social relations. The case studies in the volume cover a range of incidents relating to crime, law and deviant behaviour since 1700, from policing vice in Victorian London to chain gang narratives from the southern United States. The book concludes by demonstrating how these narratives can be brought together to produce a more nuanced history of the area and suggests avenues for future research and study.

Central Prison

Central Prison PDF Author: Gregory S. Taylor
Publisher: LSU Press
ISBN: 0807174874
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 327

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Book Description
Gregory S. Taylor’s Central Prison is the first scholarly study to explore the prison’s entire history, from its origins in the 1870s to its status in the first decades of the twenty-first century. Taylor addresses numerous features of the state’s vast prison system, including chain gangs, convict leasing, executions, and the nearby Women’s Prison, to describe better the vagaries of living behind bars in the state’s largest penitentiary. He incorporates vital elements of the state’s history into his analysis to draw clear parallels between the changes occurring in free society and those affecting Central Prison. Throughout, Taylor illustrates that the prison, like the state itself, struggled with issues of race, gender, sectionalism, political infighting, finances, and progressive reform. Finally, Taylor also explores the evolution of penal reform, focusing on the politicians who set prison policy, the officials who administered it, and the untold number of African American inmates who endured incarceration in a state notorious for racial strife and injustice. Central Prison approaches the development of the penal system in North Carolina from a myriad of perspectives, offering a range of insights into the workings of the state penitentiary. It will appeal not only to scholars of criminal justice but also to historians searching for new ways to understand the history of the Tar Heel State and general readers wanting to know more about one of North Carolina’s most influential—and infamous—institutions.

Lost Prophet

Lost Prophet PDF Author: John D'emilio
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 143913748X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 916

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Book Description
Bayard Rustin is one of the most important figures in the history of the American civil rights movement. Before Martin Luther King, before Malcolm X, Bayard Rustin was working to bring the cause to the forefront of America's consciousness. A teacher to King, an international apostle of peace, and the organizer of the famous 1963 March on Washington, he brought Gandhi's philosophy of nonviolence to America and helped launch the civil rights movement. Nonetheless, Rustin has been largely erased by history, in part because he was an African American homosexual. Acclaimed historian John D'Emilio tells the full and remarkable story of Rustin's intertwined lives: his pioneering and public person and his oblique and stigmatized private self. It was in the tumultuous 1930s that Bayard Rustin came of age, getting his first lessons in politics through the Communist Party and the unrest of the Great Depression. A Quaker and a radical pacifist, he went to prison for refusing to serve in World War II, only to suffer a sexual scandal. His mentor, the great pacifist A. J. Muste, wrote to him, "You were capable of making the 'mistake' of thinking that you could be the leader in a revolution...at the same time that you were a weakling in an extreme degree and engaged in practices for which there was no justification." Freed from prison after the war, Rustin threw himself into the early campaigns of the civil rights and anti-nuclear movements until an arrest for sodomy nearly destroyed his career. Many close colleagues and friends abandoned him. For years after, Rustin assumed a less public role even though his influence was everywhere. Rustin mentored a young and inexperienced Martin Luther King in the use of nonviolence. He planned strategy for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference until Congressman Adam Clayton Powell threatened to spread a rumor that King and Rustin were lovers. Not until Rustin's crowning achievement as the organizer of the 1963 March on Washington would he finally emerge from the shadows that homophobia cast over his career. Rustin remained until his death in 1987 committed to the causes of world peace, racial equality, and economic justice. Based on more than a decade of archival research and interviews with dozens of surviving friends and colleagues of Rustin's, Lost Prophet is a triumph. Rustin emerges as a hero of the black freedom struggle and a singularly important figure in the lost gay history of the mid-twentieth century. John D'Emilio's compelling narrative rescues a forgotten figure and brings alive a time of great hope and great tragedy in the not-so-distant past.

The World Turned

The World Turned PDF Author: John D'Emilio
Publisher: Duke University Press
ISBN: 0822383926
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 281

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Book Description
Something happened in the 1990s, something dramatic and irreversible. A group of people long considered a moral menace and an issue previously deemed unmentionable in public discourse were transformed into a matter of human rights, discussed in every institution of American society. Marriage, the military, parenting, media and the arts, hate violence, electoral politics, public school curricula, human genetics, religion: Name the issue, and the the role of gays and lesbians was a subject of debate. During the 1990s, the world seemed finally to turn and take notice of the gay people in its midst. In The World Turned, distinguished historian and leading gay-rights activist John D’Emilio shows how gay issues moved from the margins to the center of national consciousness during the critical decade of the 1990s. In this collection of essays, D’Emilio brings his historian’s eye to bear on these profound changes in American society, culture, and politics. He explores the career of Bayard Rustin, a civil rights leader and pacifist who was openly gay a generation before almost everyone else; the legacy of radical gay and lesbian liberation; the influence of AIDS activist and writer Larry Kramer; the scapegoating of gays and lesbians by the Christian Right; the gay-gene controversy and the debate over whether people are "born gay"; and the explosion of attention focused on queer families. He illuminates the historical roots of contemporary debates over identity politics and explains why the gay community has become, over the last decade, such a visible part of American life.

Troublemaker for Justice

Troublemaker for Justice PDF Author: Jacqueline Houtman
Publisher: City Lights Books
ISBN: 0872867986
Category : Young Adult Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 215

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Book Description
Chosen a Best Children's Book of the Year by the Bank Street Center! Voted a Best Book of the Year by School Library Journal and Kirkus Reviews! A biography for younger readers about one of the most influential activists of our time, who was an early advocate for African Americans and for gay rights. "Bayard had an unshakable optimism, nerves of steel, and, most importantly, a faith that if the cause is just and people are organized, nothing can stand in our way."—President Barack Obama "Bayard Rustin was one of the great organizers and activists of the Civil Rights Movement. Without his skill and vision, the historic impact of the March on Washington might not have been possible. I am glad this biography will make young people aware of his life and his incredible contribution to American history.—Congressman John Lewis "'We need, in every community, a group of angelic troublemakers,' declared Bayard Rustin in the late 1940s. A proponent of nonviolent resistance and a stalwart figure in the civil rights movement, Rustin organized a profound and peaceful milestone in American history—the 1963 March on Washington. . . . Troublemaker for Justice describes not only how Rustin orchestrated the March on Washington in two months but also how he stood up for his Quaker principles throughout his life. The three authors, Jacqueline Houtman, Walter Naegle and Michael G. Long, show the difficulties Rustin faced as a gay black man in 20th-century America, and that he shouldered them with strength, intelligence, and a quest for peace and justice."—Abby Nolan, The Washington Post "An excellent biography that belongs in every young adult library. Readers will find Rustin’s story captivating; his story could encourage young people to fight for change."—Michelle Kornberger, Library Journal,*Starred Review "In today's political landscape, this volume is a lesson in the courage to live according to one's truth and the dedication it takes to create a better world."—Kirkus Reviews, *Starred Review "A long-overdue introduction to a fascinating, influential change maker."—Publishers Weekly, *Starred Review "This biography is an indispensable addition to the literature of both civil and gay rights."—Michael Cart, Booklist, *Starred review Bayard Rustin was a major figure in the Civil Rights movement. He was arrested on a bus 13 years before Rosa Parks and he participated in integrated bus rides throughout the South 14 years before the Freedom Riders. He was a mentor to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., teaching him the techniques and philosophy of Gandhian nonviolent direct action. He organized the March on Washington in 1963, one of the most impactful mobilizations in American history. Despite these contributions, few Americans recognize his name, and he is absent from most history books, in large part because he was gay. This biography traces Rustin’s life, from his childhood and his first arrest in high school for sitting in the “whites only” section of a theater, through a lifetime of nonviolent activism. "Authors Jacqueline Houtman, Walter Naegle, and Michael G. Long provide middle and high school students with a biography of Rustin that illustrates how the personal is political. Young readers will take away valuable lessons about identity, civics, and 20th-century history."—Rethinking Schools Teachers: Discussion Guide Available! Explanation of Common Core Instructional Standards Available! Reach out to the publisher at Stacey [@] citylights.com

The Rebel Passion

The Rebel Passion PDF Author: Vera Brittain
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000024083
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 312

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Book Description
Originally published in 1964, The Rebel Passion endeavours to tell the continuous story, in terms of their ideas and personalities and the vital flame that inspired them, of a group of very different yet spiritually related Christians who sought to confront a world involved in deeper conflict than any could fully realize, with the basic essentials of peace. Individual and corporate witness, beginning even before 1914, is presented against the dark background of many countries involved directly or indirectly in war, and illustrates the international scene, dangerous and tragic yet revolutionary and apocalyptic, over the tremendous half-century through which the older generation had lived, and which shaped the lives of their juniors. In 1941 the last revised edition was issued of a factual historic record of the work of the I.F.o.R. up to twenty years ago. The present book aims at a different treatment, which instead of mainly summarizing missions, conferences and committees, seeks to interpret persons and events rather than merely describe them. It tries above all to indicate how the philosophy and example of prophetic personalities influenced their various communities, in spite of totally different official values and the consistent opposition of ‘establishments’ to minority opinions based on insight and inspiration. It suggests that the thinking of ordinary individuals with distinguished minds, without the advantage of conspicuous social labels or the opportunity to stand on political pedestals, actually operates as a leaven which changes the thought of a generation. The fact that such a result had been achieved within measurable time should have encouraged those who worked on the contemporary scene to create spiritual foundations for the labours of future man and women. This book was published to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Fellowship of Reconciliation, founded at Cambridge in December, 1914, and followed by the International Fellowship in 1919.

Radical Pacifism in Modern America

Radical Pacifism in Modern America PDF Author: Marian Mollin
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press
ISBN: 0812202821
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 267

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Book Description
Radical Pacifism in Modern America traces cycles of success and decline in the radical wing of the American peace movement, an egalitarian strain of pacifism that stood at the vanguard of antimilitarist organizing and American radical dissent from 1940 to 1970. Using traditional archival material and oral history sources, Marian Mollin examines how gender and race shaped and limited the political efforts of radical pacifist women and men, highlighting how activists linked pacifism to militant masculinity and privileged the priorities of its predominantly white members. In spite of the invisibility that this framework imposed on activist women, the history of this movement belies accounts that relegate women to the margins of American radicalism and mixed-sex political efforts. Motivated by a strong egalitarianism, radical pacifist women rejected separatist organizing strategies and, instead, worked alongside men at the front lines of the struggle to construct a new paradigm of social and political change. Their compelling examples of female militancy and leadership challenge the essentialist association of female pacifism with motherhood and expand the definition of political action to include women's political work in both the public and private spheres. Focusing on the vexed alliance between white peace activists and black civil rights workers, Mollin similarly details the difficulties that arose at the points where their movements overlapped and challenges the seemingly natural association between peace and civil rights. Emphasizing the actions undertaken by militant activists, Radical Pacifism in Modern America illuminates the complex relationship between gender, race, activism, and political culture, identifying critical factors that simultaneously hindered and facilitated grassroots efforts at social and political change.

Bayard Rustin

Bayard Rustin PDF Author: Jerald Podair
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
ISBN: 0742564800
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 193

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Book Description
Bayard Rustin was a unique twentieth-century American radical voice. A homosexual, World War II draft resister, and ex-communist, he made enormous contributions to the civil rights, socialist, labor, peace, and gay rights movements in the United States, despite being viewed as an "outsider" even by fellow activists. Rustin was a humanist who championed the disadvantaged and oppressed, regardless of identity. In Bayard Rustin: American Dreamer, Jerald Podair examines the life and career of a man who shaped virtually every aspect of the modern civil rights movement as a theorist, strategist, and spokesman. Podair begins by covering the period from Rustin's 1912 birth in West Chester, Pennsylvania, to his 1946 release from federal prison, where he served over two years for draft evasion. After his release, Rustin threw himself into work on behalf of pacifism and racial integration, two goals that, at this stage of his career, fit together almost seamlessly. Podair goes on to examine Rustin's role as the main organizer of the 1963 March on Washington, the most important civil rights demonstration in American history. He was a major influence on Martin Luther King, Jr.'s philosophy of nonviolent direct action, which led to the strategy that changed the course of American race relations. During the last years of his life, Rustin continued to champion the causes of socialism, coalition politics, and racial integration, as he also sought to aid oppressed people and foster democratic institutions worldwide. Yet for all this, Rustin was rarely permitted a leading role in the movements he helped to shape. Because of his sexuality and his background as a former communist and draft resister, he was forced to do much of his work on the fringes, offering his organizational, strategic, and rhetorical skills to public leaders who chose to keep him at arm's length. Despite this, as Podair makes clear, Bayard Rustin was one of the most important civil rights leaders—and one of the most important radical leaders—in twentieth-century American history. Documents in this book include excerpts from Rustin's writings, speeches, and public statements.

Race, Ethnicity, Gender, and Class

Race, Ethnicity, Gender, and Class PDF Author: Joseph F. Healey
Publisher: SAGE Publications
ISBN: 1506399754
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 1225

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Book Description
Known for its clear and engaging writing, the bestselling Race, Ethnicity, Gender, and Class by Joseph F. Healey, Andi Stepnick, and Eileen O’Brien has been thoroughly updated to make it fresher, more relevant, and more accessible to undergraduates. The Eighth Edition retains the same use of sociological theory to tell the story of race and other socially constructed inequalities in the U.S. and for examining the variety of experiences within each minority group, particularly differences between those of men and women. This edition also puts greater emphasis on intersectionality, gender, and sexual orientation that will offer students a deeper understanding of diversity. New to this Edition New co-author Andi Stepnick adds fresh perspectives to the book from her teaching and research on race, gender, social movements, and popular culture. New coverage of intersectionality, gender, and sexual orientation offer students a deeper understanding of diversity in the U.S. The text has been thoroughly updated from hundreds of new sources to reflect the latest research, current events, and changes in U.S. society. 80 new and updated graphs, tables, maps, and graphics draw on a wide range of sources, including the U.S. Census, Gallup, and Pew. 35 new internet activities provide opportunities for students to apply concepts by exploring oral history archives, art exhibits, video clips, and other online sites.