Daybreak of Freedom: The Montgomery Bus Boycott

by Stewart Burns (editor)

The Montgomery bus boycott was a formative moment in twentieth-century a harbinger of the African American freedom movement, a springboard for the leadership of Martin Luther King Jr., and a crucial step in the struggle to realize the American dream of liberty and equality for all. In Daybreak of Freedom , Stewart Burns presents a groundbreaking documentary history of the boycott. Using an extraordinary array of more than one hundred original documents, he crafts a compelling and comprehensive account of this celebrated year-long protest of racial segregation.

Daybreak of Freedom reverberates with the voices of those closest to the bus boycott, ranging from King and his inner circle, to Jo Ann Robinson and other women leaders who started the protest, to the maids, cooks, and other 'foot soldiers' who carried out the struggle. With a deft narrative hand and editorial touch, Burns weaves their testimony into a riveting story that shows how events in Montgomery pushed the entire nation to keep faith with its stated principles.

Genres: History

392 pages, Paperback

First published October 20, 1997

Reviews

[Aleigha (LeighLee) Marie✞❀❦ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5 stars

[Lucynell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am guessing this was essential reading when it was published and forever will be, but also especially now that violence is everywhere and everyone wishes death on another and the middle ground that is to sustain a conversation is just scorched earth. Martin Luther King Jr's non-violent ethics feel as if they are beaming in from another, ironically, more civilized dimension. Same goes for the other key figures. If this indispensable account has a flaw is that maybe it's a bit scholarly, a bit clinical, but probably not. The author lays out the whole affair in about 30 pages and complements the remaining book with transcripts and heartbreaking testimonies and documents. Excellent.

[LSC-University Park SLRC]

This book is available through the EBSCO eBook Collection for Lone Star College users. (14-digit library barcode required for off-campus access.)