Riveting ... Freedman tells a surprising and rare history of Black and Jewish Americans fighting against racism and antisemitism, often side by side, in a Northern city before the civil rights era. His brilliant profiles of these local heroes are gripping and, in many ways, the spine of the book ... Freedman gives us a dramatic retelling of the backdoor dealings at the convention over the language of a civil rights plank.
Appealing ... Freedman offers an intimate and fine-grained depiction of Humphrey’s early life and fledgling political career, as well as a revealing portrait of Minneapolis, a city of both gut-wrenching racism and creative civil rights initiatives ... Mining an archival trove of personal letters, Freedman renders Humphrey as a torn young man ... Weaves in the stories of two of Humphrey’s allies.
Freedman's account, with its you-are-there immediacy, will absorb history enthusiasts and anyone interested in the early years of the civil rights movement. He restores Humphrey to his rightful place in American politics, and reminds readers that America's battles over access and equality have deep roots in a long, anguished past.
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay[/caption]
