Freedom Libraries - The Untold Story of Libraries for African Americans in the South

This book delves into how Freedom Libraries were at the heart of the Civil Rights Movement, and the remarkable courage of the people who used them. As the Civil Rights Movement exploded across the United States, numerous libraries were desegregated on paper only, and there was another virtually unheard of struggle- the right to read.

List of contents

Acknowledgements
Introduction
1.The American Public Library Meets the Civil Rights Movement
2.Mississippi: The People Without Books
3.We Are Afraid: The Freedom Libraries
4.White Backlash: 35 Shootings; 80 Beatings; 65 Bombings
5.Alabama: Books in the Black Belt
6.Philadelphia: Books by and For Black People
7.Arkansas: We Are All Connected
8.Aftermath: The Long Dream
Notes
Bibliography
Index
About the Author

About the author

Born and raised in the shadow of the British Columbia Rocky Mountains, Mike Selby is a professional librarian. He received his MLIS from the University of Alabama, which is where he first unearthed the story of the Freedom Libraries. He is also a newspaper columnist, having published over 900 articles about libraries, reading, and print culture-much of it covering libraries during the Civil Rights Movement. He has also had two peer-reviewed academic pieces published, both on this topic.

Summary

This book delves into how Freedom Libraries were at the heart of the Civil Rights Movement, and the remarkable courage of the people who used them. As the Civil Rights Movement exploded across the United States, numerous libraries were desegregated on paper only, and there was another virtually unheard of struggle— the right to read.

Product details

• Authors: Mike Selby
• Publisher: Rowman and Littlefield
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 12.09.2019
• EAN: 9781538115534
• ISBN: 978-1-5381-1553-4
• No. of pages: 208
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > Regional and national histories; Non-fiction book > History > Miscellaneous; USA, 20th Century, 20th century history: c 1900 to c 2000, HISTORY / United States / 20th Century, 20th century, c 1900 to c 1999, Local History, United States of America, USA, History of the Americas, Library, archive and information management, Central Southern States, US South, Library, Archive & Information Management