... remarkable ... Gergel’s book is a revealing window into both the hideous racial violence and humiliation of segregation in the period immediately after World War II, and the heroic origins of the legal crusade to destroy Jim Crow ... Gergel brings his riveting narrative to a climax with the Briggs v. Elliott case of 1951 ... The great value of Unexampled Courage is that it might garner a broad audience for the kinds of heroism involved in this history of litigation, all of which was a necessary prelude to the direct-action crusade of the civil rights movement of the 1950s and ’60s. Gergel may place too much emphasis on individual agency in this story, but it is impossible to deny the pivotal role of these figures...
In Unexampled Courage...federal judge Richard Gergel presents a deeply researched account of Woodard’s tragic story and weaves it into a larger narrative. Gergel chooses as his core theme racial redemption rather than racial violence ... Some readers of his book, however, might draw from it more disturbing conclusions about America’s racial past—as well as its present ... Unexampled Courage also serves as the definitive account of Woodard’s blinding and Shull’s prosecution. Gergel delivers some stern judgments about the competence of the federal prosecutors who brought an 'ill-prepared' case against Shull ... American race relations have changed markedly since Woodard’s tragic case, and that case, as Gergel convincingly argues, played some role in producing the change.
With his judicial expertise, the author provides important insight into the legal and political calculations that were behind the federal prosecution of Woodard’s main attacker, Batesburg police chief Lynwood Shull ... The problem for Mr. Gergel, however, is that the single incident of Isaac Woodard’s blinding, as horrific as it was, can’t sustain the weight his narrative asks it to bear. Both Truman and Waring’s evolutions on racial issues were determined by a number of influences ... the politics of the day complicate any discussion of Truman’s 'awakening.' His civil-rights actions can’t be separated from his 1948 campaign strategy ... Waring’s situation was no less complex.
With a clear-eyed view of the ripple effect of shocking acts of violence, Gergel traces how the blinding of Woodard ignited black communities, the NAACP and sympathetic allies to seek justice and demand that Truman take action. Combining research and a deep knowledge of the country’s legal system, Gergel exposes America’s longstanding legacy of brutalizing black bodies to preserve a vision of America fueled by the destructive force of white supremacy.
Gergel reintroduces oft-forgotten civil rights heroes in this captivating, deeply researched work that is likely to draw in general readers, historians, and legal scholars alike.
Judge Gergel provides a heart-wrenching account of racial injustice in the South in the middle of the 20th century ... Judge Gergel probably exaggerates the impact of the blinding of Isaac Woodard on Mr. Truman’s commitment to racial justice. Nonetheless, he is surely right that Mr. Truman exhibited considerable political courage in creating the first presidential commission on civil rights...
Gergel presents a compelling account of a case that helped point the way for broader, more intense, and more effective efforts in the civil rights movement.
In this enlightening study, judge and historian Gergel illuminates the far-reaching effects of an individual act of cruelty ... Gergel’s prose is workmanlike, and he narrates this story in greater detail than some readers may desire, but this is an important work on the prehistory of the civil rights struggle and an insightful account of how a single incident can inspire massive social and political changes.
Gergel is both an astute researcher and an engaging writer, bringing this significant story to vivid life. Civil rights history at its most compelling.
