Smith-Llera, Danielle. Black Power Salute: How A Photographer Captured a Political Protest.

Smith-Llera, Danielle. Black Power Salute: How A Photographer Captured a Political Protest. Capstone Publishers   2017  64p      $34.65  ISBN 978-0-7565-5526-9      ms/hs Nonfiction  E-BN

This history book features a strong emphasis on photojournalism, as well as being one of the few books for youth that put the 1968 Olympic Games Black Power Salute in the context of the larger Civil Rights movement of the 1960s.  The author shows how the nonviolent protest affected the lives of the runners from San José State University afterward. She also gives detailed information on the symbolic reasons for the ways they wore various items of clothing (the raised pant leg, the unzipped jacket), the symbolism of the white necklace, and their shoes (or lack thereof). The photojournalists who documented the 1968 Olympic Games are named, and there is an explanation of how they came to be in a position to document what became an iconic moment.      

The series Captured Sports History includes eight titles that capture unique moments in sports. Each one features biographical information on the athletes and the photojournalists within the context of the times. The excellent photos and concise writing will appeal to readers of all ages. Grades 4+.   

Summary: Detailed background on the Black Power salute by U.S. runners during the 1968 Olympic Games, placed in the context of the 1960s Civil Rights movement. The photojournalist who captured the images is featured as well. Grades 4-12.

Civil Rights Movement, 1968 Olympic Games, Photojournalism

                                                                        --Lois McNicol

Wallace, Rich, and Sandra Neil Wallace. Blood Brother: Jonathan Daniels and his Sacrifice for Civil Rights.

Wallace, Rich, and Sandra Neil Wallace.  Blood Brother: Jonathan Daniels and his Sacrifice for Civil Rights.  Boyd’s Mills/Calkins Creek            2016    352p    $18.95  ISBN 978-1-62979-094-7     ms/hs  Biography  VG-BN              

This book is part biography, part history book about the Civil Rights movement in 1960s America. It discusses one Civil Rights activist, Jonathan Daniels, a white seminary student from New Hampshire who gave his time, his career, and ultimately his life for the fight for justice for Black people in the American South. The book covers as much as is currently known about Jonathan from his early childhood to the time when he was gunned down in Alabama in 1965. Along the way, the reader learns a good deal about the Civil Rights movement and the difficulties it faced in trying to overturn de jure segregation, racial discrimination and violence against minorities. Jonathan was a friend and a colleague of well-known Civil Rights figures like Stokely Carmichael and Ruby Sales. Although his name is not generally known by the American public, he was recognized as a hero by the movement at the time of his death, and Lyndon Johnson sent condolences to his family. More than one humanitarian award was named in his honor.

The authors became fascinated by Jonathan’s story and immersed themselves in research about him and his life. In creating this book, they are pointing out to young people that it is possible for an ordinary American to be a hero just by doing what is right, without regard to fame, fortune, or personal gain of any sort. The story is divided into easy-to-read chapters with many photographic illustrations. References for further research are included, along with source notes, an index, and a list of picture credits.  

Summary: This book discusses Civil Rights activist Jonathan Daniels, a white man from New Hampshire who was assassinated in Alabama in 1965 while working for equality for African Americans there.                

Jonathan Daniels, Civil Rights Movement                                                                 —Carol Kennedy

Freedom Summer Murders.

Mitchell, Don.  Freedom Summer Murders.  Scholastic Press  2014  250p  $18.99  ISBN 978-0-545-47725-3  hs/adult  History  VG-BN

“When historians weigh the sixth decade of the twentieth century in the United States, they will call this murder one of the revealing acts of the decade.  it was a planned, deliberate murder to try to prevent racial change; and it was committed by men who called themselves Christians and thought they were doing right.”  -- William Bradford Huie

It would be very difficult to present a completely unbiased version of the events that took place in Mississippi in the summer of 1964.  To offer an unvarnished presentation of the events, it is not possible to avoid descriptions of racism, violence, and bigotry.  The sensational murders of three young men, all civil-rights workers struggling to get blacks registered to vote, by the Ku Klux Klan, and the resulting cover-up by local authorities, are tragedies.  Don Mitchell’s writing reveals careful research and helps readers to see the victims as people, rather than footnotes in history.  The inclusion of archival photographs and commentary of family members further supports the text’s authenticity.

Having comprehensively chronicled a dark page in American history, Mitchell leaves the reader with a message of hope.  He reminds readers that even if the wheels of justice move slowly, they move inexorably towards truth.

Summary: Mitchell reviews the brutal murders of three men killed by the Ku Klux Klan in June 1964.     

Civil Rights Movement, Racial violence                --Hilary Welliver

Because They Marched.

Freedman, Russell.  Because They Marched.  Holiday House  2014  83p  $20.00  ISBN 978-0-8234-2921-9  ms/hs  History  E-BN     

Newbery Medalist Russell Freeman has written a vivid account of the march for voting rights from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, in March 1965.  Through compelling narrative and liberally illustrated with dozens of well-captioned, archival black-and-white photographs, Freeman chronicles the tensions that segregation in the South intensified in the 1960s.  Events such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s, voting rights march in January 1965, followed by the shooting of an unarmed demonstrator in February, triggered the March demonstration, which got off to a horrific beginning.  Law officers attacked peaceful demonstrators, which attracted widespread outrage and spurred civil-rights demonstrators to complete the march across Alabama at any cost.

Student readers and researchers will find this a carefully researched and useful volume.  Freeman clearly outlines the motivation and risks undertaken in seeking the basic right to vote.  Researchers will also appreciate the brief civil-rights timeline, handy index, source notes and selected bibliography.         

Summary: Freedman provides an account of a pivotal event in the history of civil rights: the march for voting rights from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama.

Civil rights movement, Voting rights                  --Hilary Welliver

Brown vs Board of Education.

Aretha, David.  Brown vs Board of Education.    Morgan Reynolds   2013  128p  $26.05  ISBN 978-1599-35370-8  ms/hs  series: Civil Rights Movement(MR)#8,12        Nonfiction  VG-BNS   

The Supreme Court case of Brown versus the Board of Education of Topeka is described in great detail and placed in its historical context in this overview for middle-school students.  We begin with a brief history of race relations, including the importance of Frederick Douglas and the Civil War, and move quickly through the years to mid-20th-century United States, when Linda Brown’s parents decided they wanted their daughter to have a better education than that afforded her by the segregated school she had been attending.  Every nuance of the case is described, including the fact that five cases were actually bundled together in the Brown decision.  The writing is good, and there are plenty of primary-source quotes, source notes, photographs with photo credits, a timeline, an index, a bibliography and lists of web sites to consult. 

The only glaring error appears on page 18, where in line 12 the text reads “nineteenth century” when it should read “twentieth century.”  This howler should be corrected in future editions.     The series is called The Civil Rights Movement, and all the books in the series are edited by David Aretha.  

Summary: The Supreme Court case of Brown versus the Board of Education of Topeka is described in great detail and placed in its historical context in this overview for middle-school students.    

Civil Rights-Court Cases                                    --Carol Kennedy