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Raised in this remarkable Alabama community founded by freed slaves, Motley reflects on a place that taught him everything he needed to know on his journey to becoming Special Assistant to President George W. Bush at the Oval Office.
About the author
Eric L. Motley grew up in the freed slaves’ town of Madison Park, Alabama. From this beginning in the black community, he rose to become a special assistant to President George W. Bush at the White House. Eric is the deputy director of the National Gallery of Art based in Washington, D.C., and a former executive vice president of the Aspen Institute. He is a graduate of Samford University, and he earned a master of letters as a Rotary International Ambassadorial Scholar at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland and a PhD as the John Steven Watson Scholar.
Summary
Welcome to Madison Park, a small community in Alabama founded by freed slaves in 1880. And meet Eric Motley, a native son who came of age in this remarkable place where constant lessons in self-determination, hope, and unceasing belief in the American dream taught him everything he needed for his journey to the Oval Office as a Special Assistant to President George W. Bush.
Eric grew up among people whose belief was to “give” and never turn away from your neighbor’s need. There was Aunt Shine, the goodly matriarch who cared so much about young Motley’s schooling that she would stand up in a crowded church and announce Eric’s progress or his shortcomings. There was Old Man Salery, who secretly siphoned gasoline from his beat-up car into the Motleys' tank at night. There were Motley’s grandparents, who bought books for Eric they couldn’t afford, spending the last of their seed money. And there was Reverend Brinkley, a man of enormous faith and simple living. It was said that whenever the Reverend came your way, light abounded. Life in Madison Park wasn’t always easy or fair, and Motley reveals personal and heartbreaking stories of racial injustice and segregation. But Eric shows how the community taught him everything he needed to know about love and faith.
This charming, engaging, and deeply inspiring memoir will help you remember that we can create a world of shared values based on love and hope. It is a story that reveals the amazing power of faith in God and each other. If you’re in search of hope during troubled times, look no further than Madison Park.
Additional text
A wry, nostalgic memoir of the aspirational African American community where he grew up, recalling its quirky neighbors and feisty pride amid the tensions of racially charged Alabama.
