Edited by Eric Foner and coordinated with each chapter of the text, this companion to Give Me Liberty! includes primary-source documents touching on the theme of American freedom. The freedom theme is explored in the words of well-known historical figures and ordinary Americans. Each document is accompanied by an introductory headnote and study questions.

The best-selling companion reader to the Give Me Liberty! family of books.

“A vast choral pageant that recounts the momentous work of the civil rights struggle.”—The New York Times Book Review A monumental volume drawing upon nearly one thousand interviews with civil rights activists, politicians, reporters, Justice Department officials, and others, weaving a fascinating narrative of the civil rights movement told by the people who lived it Join brave and terrified youngsters walking through a jeering mob and up the steps of Central High School in Little Rock. Listen to the vivid voices of the ordinary people who manned the barricades, the laborers, the students, the housewives without whom there would have been no civil rights movements at all. In this remarkable oral history, Henry Hampton, creator and executive producer of the acclaimed PBS series Eyes on the Prize, and Steve Fayer, series writer, bring to life the country’s great struggle for civil rights as no conventional narrative can. You will hear the voices of those who defied the blackjacks, who went to jail, who witnessed and policed the movement; of those who stood for and against it—voices from the heart of America.

It s the leading text in the field because it works in the classroom."

Putting the voices of the enslaved front and center, Gloria Garcia Rodriguez's study presents a compelling overview of African slavery in Cuba and its relationship to the plantation system that was the economic center of the New World. A major essay by Garcia, who has done decades of archival research on Cuban slavery, introduces the work, providing a history of the development, maintenance, and economy of the slave system in Cuba, which was abolished in 1886, later than in any country in the Americas except Brazil. The second part of the book features eighty previously unpublished primary documents selected by Garcia that vividly illustrate the experiences of Cuba's African slaves. This translation offers English-language readers a substantial look into the very rich, and much underutilized, material on slavery in Cuban archives and is especially suitable for teaching about the African diaspora, comparative slavery, and Cuban studies. Highlighting both the repressiveness of slavery and the legal and social spaces opened to slaves to challenge that repression, this collection reveals the rarely documented voices of slaves, as well as the social and cultural milieu in which they lived.

Compelling and enlightening, this collection of primary source documents allows twenty-first century students to 'direct dial' key figures in African-American history. It includes concise and perceptive commentary along with engaging suggestions for discussion and project work. Examines key themes from multiple perspectives Features a diverse range of voices that cut across class and political affiliations as well as across regions and generations Chronological and thematic coverage from emancipation to the current day Primary source documents include everything from letters and speeches to photographs, rap lyrics and newspaper reports Incorporates recent as well as traditional historical interpretations Classroom-ready text which includes keynotes on documents, differentiated material and engaging discussion questions