Jim Crow: A Historical Encyclopedia of the American Mosaic: A Historical Encyclopedia of the American Mosaic

by Nikki Brown, Barry M. Stentiford

Overview

Many Americans imagine that African Americans' struggle to achieve equal rights has advanced in a linear fashion from the end of slavery until the present. In reality, for more than six decades, African Americans had their civil rights and basic human rights systematically denied in much of the nation. Jim Crow: A Historical Encyclopedia of the American Mosaic sheds new light on how the systematic denigration of African Americans after slavery—known collectively as "Jim Crow"—was established, maintained, and eventually dismantled.

Written in a manner appropriate for high school and junior high students as well as undergraduate readers, this book examines the period of Jim Crow after slavery that is often overlooked in American history curricula. An introductory essay frames the work and explains the significance and scope of this regrettable period in American history. Written by experts in their fields, the accessible entries will enable readers to understand the long hard road before the inception of the Civil Rights Movement in the 20th century while also gaining a better understanding of the experiences of minorities in the United States—African Americans, in particular.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781610696647
Publisher:	ABC-CLIO, Incorporated
Publication date:	10/28/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	473
File size:	13 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Nikki L. M. Brown, PhD, is associate professor of history at the University of New Orleans.

Barry M. Stentiford is professor of military history U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, School of Advanced Military Studies.

Editorial Reviews

"Recommended for most public and high-school libraries." - Booklist

"[F]or beginning students and general readers wishing to educate themselves on this aspect of the American experience.
Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates and general readers." - Choice

"High school students and anyone with an interest in learning more about this racial segregation will find this title of interest." - ARBAonline

"Jim Crow: A Historical Encyclopedia of the American Mosaic is a good resource with good information. . . . [I]t may prove a lower-cost alternative for high schools or colleges that have limited coverage for this topic or need a good accompanying volume to accentuate the physical and electronic resources already available to their readers." - Reference Reviews

From the Publisher

05/15/2015
Edited by Brown (history, Univ. of New Orleans; The Jim Crow Encyclopedia) and Stentiford (military history, U.S. Army's Sch. of Advanced Military Studies, Fort Leavenworth), this work begins with an informative overview of Jim Crow—the system of laws discriminating against black citizens in the southern United States after Reconstruction—that includes basic concepts and definitions. Lists of entries and of primary source documents, a guide to related topics, and a chronology quickly follow. Next are 104 alphabetical summaries that comprise the book's core and cover from Reconstruction in the 1860s to the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Articles range from a page to as many as ten pages in length each and offer cross-references and suggestions for further reading. The contributors, who are primarily professors, teachers, journalists, and lawyers, focus on the most important people, events, and institutions involved in the creation, maintenance, and eventual dismembering of Jim Crow, with students and the general public as their target audience. The editors cite several purposes for the encyclopedia: to create a succinct ready reference for students seeking an understanding of Jim Crow and related issues; to shed light on a period of American history often overlooked by much of society; to find new perspectives on Jim Crow; and to encourage students to engage in a deeper understanding of particular topics through the further reading included with each entry. The work concludes with five primary documents, a selected bibliography, recommended websites, and a topical index. Although the inclusion of more primary documents would enhance the presentation, the encyclopedia works well not only as an introduction to Jim Crow but also as a solid source for research on the subject. VERDICT A concise, accessible, and well-organized book that will work well for its intended audience.—Rob Tench, Old Dominion Univ. Lib., Norfolk, VA

Library Journal