Ella Josephine Baker (1903-1986) was among the most influential strategists of the most important social movement in modern US history; the Civil Rights Movement; yet most Americans have never heard of her. Behind the scenes; she organized on behalf of the major civil rights organizations of her day—the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP); the Southern Christian Leadership Council (SCLC); and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)—among many other activist groups. As she once told an interviewer; “[Y]ou didn’t see me on television; you didn’t see news stories about me. The kind of role that I tried to play was to pick up pieces or put pieces together out of which I hoped organization might come. My theory is; strong people don’t need strong leaders.â€Rejecting charismatic leadership as a means of social change; Baker invented a form of grassroots community organizing for social justice that had a profound impact on the struggle for civil rights and continues to inspire agents of change on behalf of a wide variety of social issues. In this book; historian J. Todd Moye masterfully reconstructs Baker’s life and contribution for a new generation of readers. Those who despair that the civil rights story is told too often from the top down and at the dearth of accessible works on women who helped shape the movement will welcome this new addition to the Library of African American Biography series; designed to provide concise; readable; and up-to-date lives of leading black figures in American history.
#1131266 in Books 2012-05-30Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.00 x .80 x 8.00l; 1.75 #File Name: 1440218714288 pages
Review
21 of 21 people found the following review helpful. Does not disappointBy Donna KeatingMy new book from Rosemary Youngs arrived in today's mail into my happy hands. The book does not disappoint. There are poignant excerpts; notes; and comments from the Civil War era along with exciting blocks. These little blocks are a scrap quilter's delight and there is also many blocks that provide a large area for use a focus fabric of some type. From what I understand; if you do not wish to draft the blocks for sewing; you may purchase a separate CD containing the block patterns.5 of 5 people found the following review helpful. Some good ideas but not for meBy P. HustonNot what I expected. The blocks reminded me more of crazy quilts as the center of each block had a vignette in it. And as a history buff I expected more information than "inspired by the diary of ...." Inspired How???? I wanted to make a civil war sampler quilt but not with this book. Some good ideas but not for me.12 of 12 people found the following review helpful. not what I expectedBy Phyllis StewartI was looking for blocks from the civil war era - not new blocks made up about the civil war ers
