Driving while Black : African American travel and the road to civil rights
Book
First edition.
"It's hardly a secret that mobility has always been limited, if not impossible, for African Americans. Before the Civil War, masters confined their slaves to their property, while free Black people found themselves regularly stopped, questioned, and even kidnapped. Restrictions on movement before emancipation carried over, in different forms, into Reconstruction and beyond; for most of the twentieth century, many white Americans felt blithely comfortable denying their Black countrymen the right to travel freely on trains and buses. Yet it became more difficult to shackle someone who was cruising along a highway at forty-five miles per hour. In Driving While Black, acclaimed historian Gretchen Sorin reveals how the car--the ultimate symbol of independence and possibility--has always held particular importance for African Americans, allowing Black families to evade the many dangers presented by an entrenched racist society and to enjoy, in some measure, the freedom of the open road. She recounts the creation of a parallel, unseen world of Black motorists, who relied on travel guides, Black-only businesses, and informal communication networks to keep them safe. From coast to coast, mom-and-pop guesthouses, beauty parlors, large hotels--including New York's Hotel Theresa, the Hampton House in Miami, and the Dunbar Hotel in Los Angeles--and nightclubs and restaurants like New Orleans' Dooky Chase and Atlanta's Paschal's fed travelers and provided places to stay the night. At the heart of Sorin's story is Victor and Alma Green's famous Green Book, a travel guide begun in 1936 that allowed Black Americans to join in that most basic American rite, the family vacation. As Sorin demonstrates, Black travel guides and Black-only businesses encouraged a new way of resisting oppression. Black Americans could be confident of finding welcoming establishments as they traveled for vacation or for work. Civil rights activists learned where to stay and where to eat in the South between marches and protests. As Driving While Black reminds us, the civil rights movement was just that--a movement of Black people and their allies in defiance of local law and custom. At the same time, Sorin shows that the car, despite the freedoms it offered, brought Black people up against new challenges, from segregated ambulance services to unwarranted traffic stops and the racist violence that too often followed. Interwoven with Sorin's own family history and enhanced by dozens of little-known images, Driving While Black charts how the automobile fundamentally reshaped African American life, and opens up an entirely new view onto one of the most important issues of our time." --
Available copies
- 21 of 21 copies available at Westchester Library System.
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0 current holds with 21 total copies.| Location | Call Number / Shelving Location |
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| Bedford Hills Free Library | 323.11 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31003151428742 |
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| Bronxville Public Library | 323.11 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31004151699886 |
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| Chappaqua Library | 323.1196 SORIN (Text) Nonfiction |
31005600049672 |
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| Croton Free Library | 323.1196 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31006151776507 |
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| Greenburgh Public Library | 323.119 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31009154678779 |
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| Irvington Public Library | 323.119 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31012154571481 |
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| John C. Hart Memorial Library | 323.11 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31030154984801 |
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| Katonah Village Library | 323.1196 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31013151860281 |
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| Larchmont Public Library | 323.1196 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31014152855544 |
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| Mount Vernon Public Library | 323.11 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31018155320729 |
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| New Rochelle Public Library | 323.119 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31019156554142 |
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| North Castle Public Library | 323.119 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31001151953453 |
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| Ossining Public Library | 323.1196 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31021153286728 |
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| Port Chester-Rye Brook Public Library | 323.11 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31025152317855 |
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| Rye Free Reading Room | TIMES - 323.11 SORIN (Text) Nonfiction |
31028153019447 |
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| Town of Pelham Public Library | 323.119 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31023151228108 |
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| Warner Library | 323.119 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31033152138792 |
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| White Plains Public Library | 323.1196 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31544209960830 |
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| Yonkers Grinton I. Will Library | 323.11 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31035613048601 |
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| Yonkers Riverfront Library | 323.11 S (Text) Nonfiction |
31035161012066 |
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| Yonkers Riverfront Library | HS 323.11 S (Text) Reference |
31035161012058 |
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| 100 | 1 | . | ‡aSorin, Gretchen Sullivan, ‡eauthor. |
| 245 | 1 | 0. | ‡aDriving while Black : ‡bAfrican American travel and the road to civil rights / ‡cGretchen Sorin. |
| 250 | . | ‡aFirst edition. | |
| 264 | 1. | ‡aNew York, NY : ‡bLiveright Publishing Corporation, a division of W.W. Norton & Company, ‡c[2020] | |
| 264 | 4. | ‡c©2020 | |
| 300 | . | ‡axviii, 332 pages : ‡billustrations, portraits ; ‡c24 cm | |
| 336 | . | ‡atext ‡btxt ‡2rdacontent | |
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| 504 | . | ‡aIncludes bibliographical references and index. | |
| 505 | 0 | 0. | ‡tThe journey -- ‡t"Humiliation stalks them" -- ‡tAfrican Americans and the automobile -- ‡t"Through the windshield" -- ‡tDriving while black -- ‡tTravel guides for everyone -- ‡tVictor and Alma Green's The Negro motorist green book -- ‡t"Where will you stay tonight?" -- ‡t"Vacation without aggravation." |
| 520 | . | ‡a"It's hardly a secret that mobility has always been limited, if not impossible, for African Americans. Before the Civil War, masters confined their slaves to their property, while free Black people found themselves regularly stopped, questioned, and even kidnapped. Restrictions on movement before emancipation carried over, in different forms, into Reconstruction and beyond; for most of the twentieth century, many white Americans felt blithely comfortable denying their Black countrymen the right to travel freely on trains and buses. Yet it became more difficult to shackle someone who was cruising along a highway at forty-five miles per hour. In Driving While Black, acclaimed historian Gretchen Sorin reveals how the car--the ultimate symbol of independence and possibility--has always held particular importance for African Americans, allowing Black families to evade the many dangers presented by an entrenched racist society and to enjoy, in some measure, the freedom of the open road. She recounts the creation of a parallel, unseen world of Black motorists, who relied on travel guides, Black-only businesses, and informal communication networks to keep them safe. From coast to coast, mom-and-pop guesthouses, beauty parlors, large hotels--including New York's Hotel Theresa, the Hampton House in Miami, and the Dunbar Hotel in Los Angeles--and nightclubs and restaurants like New Orleans' Dooky Chase and Atlanta's Paschal's fed travelers and provided places to stay the night. At the heart of Sorin's story is Victor and Alma Green's famous Green Book, a travel guide begun in 1936 that allowed Black Americans to join in that most basic American rite, the family vacation. As Sorin demonstrates, Black travel guides and Black-only businesses encouraged a new way of resisting oppression. Black Americans could be confident of finding welcoming establishments as they traveled for vacation or for work. Civil rights activists learned where to stay and where to eat in the South between marches and protests. As Driving While Black reminds us, the civil rights movement was just that--a movement of Black people and their allies in defiance of local law and custom. At the same time, Sorin shows that the car, despite the freedoms it offered, brought Black people up against new challenges, from segregated ambulance services to unwarranted traffic stops and the racist violence that too often followed. Interwoven with Sorin's own family history and enhanced by dozens of little-known images, Driving While Black charts how the automobile fundamentally reshaped African American life, and opens up an entirely new view onto one of the most important issues of our time." -- ‡cFrom dust jacket. | |
| 650 | 0. | ‡aAfrican Americans ‡xTravel ‡xHistory ‡y20th century. | |
| 650 | 0. | ‡aAfrican American automobile drivers ‡xHistory ‡y20th century. | |
| 650 | 0. | ‡aAutomobile travel ‡zUnited States ‡xHistory ‡y20th century. | |
| 650 | 0. | ‡aSegregation in transportation ‡zUnited States ‡xHistory ‡y20th century. | |
| 650 | 0. | ‡aAfrican Americans ‡xSegregation ‡xHistory ‡y20th century. | |
| 650 | 0. | ‡aAfrican Americans ‡xSocial conditions ‡y20th century. | |
| 650 | 0. | ‡aCivil rights ‡zUnited States ‡xHistory ‡y20th century. | |
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