Pioneers of Equality

Children's Literature - Elizabeth D. Schafer

Courageous and tenacious African Americans achieved Civil Rights milestones in their quests to achieve egalitarian and humanitarian conditions. This "African American History" series book presents brief accounts of twelve individuals and several military groups who were catalysts for change. The introductory chapter provides context for their actions by discussing socioeconomic situations African Americans encountered from Reconstruction through the mid-twentieth century. The following sections examine notable African Americans representing diverse professions and cultural endeavors who are frequently profiled in Civil Rights histories written for children. In this way, the book misses an opportunity to present information about overlooked pioneers. Only one woman is discussed, even though examples of outstanding female pioneers could have been incorporated into every category. This book omits details, emphasizing pioneering achievements such as the fact that George Washington Carver was the first African American to attend Iowa State College where he received bachelor's and master's degrees and was the first African American on the faculty. The "Lynching" section contains a misleading photograph showing a scaffold; this suggests an orderly process, not the impulsive brutality, shooting and burning that was often inflicted on many lynching victims of various races. This text does not refer to Tuskegee lynching records which documented and enumerated those crimes from contemporary resources. Archival illustrations and a glossary complement the text, but no bibliography or citations are included to aid students in pursuing additional information. Supplement with Ellen Levine's Freedom's Children: Young Civil Rights Activists Tell Their Own Stories (1993), Elizabeth Partridge's Marching for Freedom: Walk Together, Children, and Don't You Grow Weary (2009), and Linda Brown, You Are Not Alone: The Brown v. Board of Education Decision (2003) edited by Joyce Carol Thomas. Reviewer: Elizabeth D. Schafer