The Movement
The African American Struggle for Civil Rights
Published on 29. April 2021
Book
Hardback
164 pages
978-0-19-752579-1 (ISBN)
Description
The civil rights movement was among the most important historical developments of the twentieth century and one of the most remarkable mass movements in American history. Not only did it decisively change the legal and political status of African Americans, but it prefigured as well the moral premises and methods of struggle for other historically oppressed groups seeking equal standing in American society. And, yet, despite a vague, sometimes begrudging recognition of its immense import, more often than not the movement has been misrepresented and misunderstood. For the general public, a singular moment, frozen in time at the Lincoln Memorial, sums up much of what Americans know about that remarkable decade of struggle.
In The Movement, Thomas C. Holt provides an informed and nuanced understanding of the origins, character, and objectives of the mid-twentieth-century freedom struggle, privileging the aspirations and initiatives of the ordinary, grassroots people who made it. Holt conveys a sense of these developments as a social movement, one that shaped its participants even as they shaped it. He emphasizes the conditions of possibility that enabled the heroic initiatives of the common folk over those of their more celebrated leaders. This groundbreaking book reinserts the critical concept of "movement" back into our image and understanding of the civil rights movement.
In The Movement, Thomas C. Holt provides an informed and nuanced understanding of the origins, character, and objectives of the mid-twentieth-century freedom struggle, privileging the aspirations and initiatives of the ordinary, grassroots people who made it. Holt conveys a sense of these developments as a social movement, one that shaped its participants even as they shaped it. He emphasizes the conditions of possibility that enabled the heroic initiatives of the common folk over those of their more celebrated leaders. This groundbreaking book reinserts the critical concept of "movement" back into our image and understanding of the civil rights movement.
Reviews / Votes
With this latest work, Holt envisions a more complete Civil Rights Movement, one that reveals exactly what was at stake for Black Americans at the micro and macro levels of the time in their quest for equality...This book holds up a mirror to a pivotal, progressive, and painful time in this nation's past, which is precisely what Americans need more of right now. * A. O. Yeboah, CHOICE * Despite their brevity, the six chapters offer a wealth of information and interpretive insight on the nature of the post-World War II African American freedom struggle. Holt's command of the secondary literature is sure-handed and reliable, and his conclusions about the complexities of racial discrimination and resistance bear the mark of a veteran scholar at the top of his game. Indeed, it is difficult to imagine a more valuable or thought-provoking introduction to the history of a movement that changed all of our lives. * Raymond Arsenault, Journal of Southern History * A concise, lucid and well-balanced account by one of America's best historians of the topic. * Tony Barber, Financial Times * A succinct but nuanced overview of the origins, objectives and achievements of the civil rights movement ... Holt pays particular attention to the ordinary people and communities who took significant risks to make up the body of the movement. * Ellie Cawthorne, BBC History Magazine * [This] concise but comprehensive history of the US civil rights movement pulls off an ambitious balancing act, placing the African-American fight for equality within its wider political and social context - all without losing sight of the campaigners on the frontline ... a hugely humanistic overview. * BBC History Revealed * A bold and vivid story of the everyday human made heroic... Concise and riveting, The Movement is an excellent work for those seeking an examination of the US civil rights movement from a perspective somewhat rare in more mainstream histories. And for those seeking a deeper involvement, it is a good introduction. * Ron Jacobs, Morning Star * Thomas Holt's book on the history of the Civil Rights era, The Movement: The African American Struggle for Civil Rights is a valuable and incisive work that covers the broad era of civil rights in an accessible but also rigorous manner...The Movement is a valuable resource for thinking through the Civil Rights era and its impact on American history. * Robert Green, Clafin University, USA, Journal of Contemporary History *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Cloth over boards
Illustrations
10
Dimensions
Height: 212 mm
Width: 140 mm
Thickness: 19 mm
Weight
340 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-752579-1 (9780197525791)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
01/2021
1st Edition
OUP eBook
€5.49
Available for download
E-Book
01/2021
1st Edition
OUP eBook
€5.49
Available for download
Person
Thomas C. Holt is James Westfall Thompson Professor of American and African American History at the University of Chicago and the author of Children of Fire: A History of African Americans and The Problem of Race in the Twenty-First Century.
Content
Acknowledgements
Table of Contents
List of Illustrations
Introduction: Carrie's Rebellion
Chapter 1: Before Montgomery
Chapter 2: Communities Organizing for Change: New South Cities
Chapter 3: Communities Organizing for Change along the New South-Old South Divide
Chapter 4: Organizing in "the American Congo": Mississippi's Freedom Summer and Its Aftermath
Chapter 5: Freedom Movements in the North and the Quest for Black Power
Chapter 6: Legacies: "Freedom is a Constant Struggle"
Notes and References
Further Readings
Table of Contents
List of Illustrations
Introduction: Carrie's Rebellion
Chapter 1: Before Montgomery
Chapter 2: Communities Organizing for Change: New South Cities
Chapter 3: Communities Organizing for Change along the New South-Old South Divide
Chapter 4: Organizing in "the American Congo": Mississippi's Freedom Summer and Its Aftermath
Chapter 5: Freedom Movements in the North and the Quest for Black Power
Chapter 6: Legacies: "Freedom is a Constant Struggle"
Notes and References
Further Readings