We Shall Overcome: The History of the Civil Rights Movement As It Happened (Book with 2 Audio CDs)

By Herb Boyd, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee

In words, photos and on two audio CDs, witness the courageous and controversial stories that defined America's civil rights movement An entire generation of Americans faced the lynching of teenager Emmett Till, the murder of four girls at church, and the denial of basic liberties like voting rights, equal education and political representation. This is their story. We Shall Overcome is a gripping chronicle of the words and voices of the civil rights movement. From stirring speeches to the voices of hate, this collection brings to life the battle for justice and equality that shook America to its core. We Shall Overcome brings you there--from the schools to the sit-ins, from Little Rock to Selma, from the pulpit to the marches. American Book Award winning author Herb Boyd tells the dramatic stories of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Fannie Lou Hamer, Stokely Carmichael, Ella Baker and activist groups like the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and the Black Panthers. In words, photos and on two accompanying audio CDs, you'll witness the courageous and controversial stories that defined America's civil rights movement. "With powerfully superb reporting Herb Boyd slams us back into the most grueling hours of Black America's bloody struggle for Civil Rights."--Gordon Parks, award-winning photographer, writer and filmmaker "An indispensable window on history. Herb Boyd's dramatic evocation of the legendary civil rights struggle of the 1960s is at once dramatic history and engaging literature."--Paul Robeson, Jr. "We Shall Overcome captures definitively the drama of the mighty social and spiritual movement that transformed America almost fifty years ago. Vivid, compelling, moving, inspiring, it brings alive the years of struggle and success, strife and hope, that led to the final triumph of justice for black Americans against Jim Crow. This is a gift to be cherished, an enduring reminder of the heroism of those women, men, and children who sacrificed even their lives that all of us might be free."--Arnold Rampersad, author of The Life of Langston Hughes, Days of Grace (with Arthur Ashe), and Jackie Robinson, Cognizant Dean for Humanities and Kimball Professor in the Humanities at Stanford University "From the murder of Emmett Till to the assassination of Martin Luther King, Herb Boyd takes us on a intellectual and spiritual journey of what it has meant to be an African American resisting in America."--Sonia Sanchez, poet and author of the collections Shake Loose My Skin and Like Singing Coming Off Drums among others

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 140220213X
• ISBN13: 9781402202131
• Release Date: October 2004
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Mediafusion
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 1.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 9.2" x 10.9"

Customer Reviews

We Shall Overcome

I was given the privilege of see a copy of the above mentioned book by a friend and found it very interesting and very useful for Black History Month.

Excellent Book

I would like to say that this is a great book if you are interested in knowing what happen just 50 years ago.

Wonderfully Put Together

I bought this book for a political science class, sadly we never used it though, however, I think this is one of the best investments I could have made in a text book. It chronicles the civil rights movement and contains some pictures that are otherwise hard to find anywhere else. I attend Florida A & M and there is actually a piture of Stokley Carmichael standing in front of one of our buildings delivering one of his earth shaking speeches, I'm sure... Unfortunately, I was disheartened by the way the author skipped over Malcolm X's role in the civil rights era and how he inspired later organizations such as the Black panther Party. But that, a big issue for me, aside, this is a great textbook. When I start teaching, I will probably refer back to it for my history classes.

"Living the Movement"

As a child growing up through the movement, this text has allowed me to embrace the struggle as an adult. The actual audio accounts are at times distrubing, but the realization of what people of color went through during that era is something I must endure as an African American. I highly recommend this text.