Public in Name Only : The 1939 Alexandria Library Sit-In Demonstration.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Mitchell-Powell, Brenda.

Series:

Studies in Print Culture and the History of the Book Series

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Tucker, Samuel Wilbert, 1913-1990.

Tucker, Samuel Wilbert.

Alexandria Library (Alexandria, Va.).

Alexandria Library (Alexandria, Va.)--History.

Segregation.

Public libraries.

Civil rights demonstrations.

African Americans and libraries.

Segregation--Virginia--Alexandria.

African Americans and libraries--Virginia--Alexandria.

Public libraries--Virginia--Alexandria--History.

Civil rights demonstrations--Virginia--Alexandria--History.

Virginia--Alexandria.

Genre:

History

Electronic books.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (268 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Amherst : University of Massachusetts Press, 2022.

Summary:

"When Alexandria, Virginia's first public library was constructed just a few blocks from his home, Samuel Wilbert Tucker, a young, Black attorney, was appalled to learn that he could not use the library because of his race. Inspired by the legal successes of the NAACP in discrimination cases, he organized a grassroots protest to desegregate the library that his tax dollars supported. Public in Name Only tells the important, but largely forgotten, story of Tucker and a group of Black citizens who agitated for change in the terms and conditions of their lives. Employing the combined strategies of direct-action public protest, nonviolent civil disobedience, and municipal litigation, Tucker's initiative dovetailed with the national priorities and tactics of larger civil rights organizations. While Tucker's campaign did not end with the desegregation of the Alexandria Library, but instead resulted in the creation of a 'separate-and-unequal' Jim Crow Black branch, the sit-in demonstration represents a momentous early struggle for racial equity waged through civil rights activism"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Machine generated contents note: ch. One Black Access to Public Libraries: The Infrastructures of Black Literary and Print Culture

ch. Two Bold Beginnings: The NAACP, Samuel Wilbert Tucker, and the Quest for Educational Equity

ch. Three Prelude to the Sit-In, Part One: History of the City of Alexandria

ch. Four History as Context: The Era of Jim Crow

ch. Five Prelude to the Sit-In, Part Two: The Genesis of the Alexandria Library

ch. Six Prelude to the Sit-In, Part Three: Premises and Rationales

ch. Seven A Seat at the Reading Table: The 1939 Alexandria Library Sit-in Demonstration

ch. Eight What Happened? What Changed?.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 193-237) and index.

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

1-61376-935-0

9781613769355

OCLC:

1289618547