*Starred Review* The constant struggle for freedom of people of African descent in the Americas, from the colonial era to the present day, forms the focal point of this anthology. Highlighting the variance between white and black concepts and applications of freedom, the collection provides a perspective of the struggle from the bottom up, in the reality of ordinary life, where people express their struggles through their imaginations as an expression of creative possibilities. This collection of speeches, essays, poems, sermons, folktales, letters, and interviews reflects the struggle within the American culture, and resistance in multiple forms, including the recognition of the significance of gender and sexuality in this struggle. The first part explores gender, kinship, and community, with contributions by Sojourner Truth, W. E. B. DuBois, Eldridge Cleaver, Anita Hill, and Angela Davis. Part 2 focuses on political, economic, and social justice andincludes a letter from Benjamin Banneker to Thomas Jefferson and essays by Booker T. Washington, Bayard Rustin, and Jesse Jackson. The final section--culture, faith, and celebration--includes contributions from Henry Louis Gates Jr., Ralph Ellison, Michael Eric Dyson, and Louis Farrakhan. An excellent read and reference resource.
Vanessa BushCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Review
The beauty of this volume is not that it challenges the existing canon on black experience but that it fills lacunae left by other works... Essential reading for anyone interested in American history and African American studies, this is recommended for both public and academic libraries.
(Edward G. McCormack, University of Southern Mississippi
Library Journal 38 2004)
Highlighting the variance between white and black concepts and applications of freedom,... [t]his collection of speeches, essays, poems, sermons, folktales, letters, and interviews reflects the struggle within the American culture... An excellent read and reference resource.
(
Booklist )
Spanning the period from the Colonial era to the present, this important anthology features the works of noteworthy figures of African American history and culture... Highly recommended.
(
Choice )
Recommended for all public and academic libraries.
(Anthony J. Adam
American Reference Books Annual )
Elegantly structured anthology.
(Andrew Radford
Journal of American Studies )
