THE JOURNAL OF BLACK POETRY, Fall 1967, Volume 1, Number 6

Published and edited by Joe Goncalves for all Black people everywhere, San Francisco, 1967, first printing. Illustrated wrappers, side staple bound, 10" x 7", 38 pages, illustrated with 3 b&w photographs, graphics and a powerful centerfold image by Black Panther artist Emory Douglas before he joined the Black Panther Party. Also includes work by Sonia Sanchez, Marvin X, Gwendolyn Brooks and others. GOOD CONDITION: covers are lightly toned and have light foxing mainly to the edges, rear cover has offsetting to its upper portion and a light horizontal crease, the staples are rusted but holding well, the inner pages have a small spot here and there but are overall tight, bright, clean and unmarked. A complete, respectable copy.

The Journal of Black Poetry is a radical example of an independently published poetry journal that popularized the imagery and racial characteristics of the Black Arts Movement, the only American literary movement to merge art with a political agenda. More than a poetry journal, it published criticism, reviews, and news about Black cultural issues. The Black Arts Movement was a controversial literary faction that emerged in the mid 1960s as the artistic arm of the Black Power Movement, a militant political mobilization that rejected the integrationist tactics of the Civil Rights era that preceded it.

The Black Riders Liberation Party is a revolutionary descendant of the Oakland born Black Panther Party founded by imprisoned gang members in a Youth Authority college class in 1996. The Black Commune Program is an upgraded version of the original Black Panther Party's Ten Point Platform and Program, which includes the demand for treatment of AIDS patients and an end to capitalists smuggling drugs into Black communities and adds a point on ecological destruction as it relates to the oppressed.

THE BLACK COMMUNE PROGRAM BROADSIDE

Produced by The Black Riders Liberation Party, Oakland, California, no date, circa 2010. Photocopied, white paper, 17" x 11". VERY GOOD CONDITION: stiff vertical and horizontal creases from being folded in half twice, and some crinkles and creases from handling, overall a solid and bright copy of this scarce Oakland Black Riders manifesto.

The Oakland BRLP Chapter was created in 2010 during the struggle for justice for Oscar Grant. Known for their community advocacy work, they gave public presentations on the Black Commune Program and passed out these broadsides at their events between 2010 and 2015 until the Chapter closed.

WOMAN'S CONVENTION AUXILIARY NATIONAL BAPTIST CONVENTION 65th Anniversary Program Dallas, Texas 1901 - 1966 : Theme "Together We Stand"

Souvenir Program, Published by the Woman's Convention Auxiliary to the National Baptist Convention, Dallas, Texas 1966. First edition. Softcover, illustrated green wrappers, side staple bound, 12" x 9", 62 pages, historically illustrated throughout with b&w portraits, and photographs of the Black woman and men leaders of the NCB. GOOD CONDITION: covers have edge and corner creasing and some closed tears to the top edge, internally light creasing to the corner-tips, and light wear from age and use, overall tight, bright, clean and unmarked. A remarkable historic documentation of the Black Women in the leadership roles of a pivotal African American religious and activist organization at the height of the Civil Rights Movement. Scarce, none in OCLC collections worldwide.

The National Baptist Convention (NBC) was founded in 1895, A major organization of African American Baptists and the nation's largest Black religious organization. Unfortunately, the NCB was not supportive of women's leadership so in 1900 two Black Women Suffragists and Civil Rights Activists, Sarah Willie Layten (1864-1950) and Nannie Helen Burroughs (1879-1961) played pivotal leadership roles in founding the Woman's Convention Auxiliary to the NBC. Representing over one million Black Baptist women, the Auxiliary provided means through which women organized on state and local levels around religious, political, and social issues, making their place of worship an epicenter for Black liberation and social change.

SECOND BETHEL MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH 25th Anniversary Souvenir Program (Silver) 1954 - 1979 : The Rev. Charles F. Thomas, Pastor

Black churches were the heart and soul of the Civil Rights Movement. Educating the African American community was essential to furthering the Movement. Second Bethel Missionary Baptist under the leadership of Reverend Charles F. Thomas was an important voice for Oakland's Black experience during a very tumultuous time.

Scarce Souvenir Program, Published by the Second Bethel Missionary Baptist Church, Oakland, California, 1979. First edition. Softcover, illustrated silver paper wraps, side staple bound, 11" x 8.5", 24 pages, illustrated throughout with b&w portraits, photographs, and community advertisements. VERY GOOD CONDITION: corner creasing, light wear from age, overall tight, bright, clean and unmarked. An historic documentation of Oakland's thriving African American Baptist community. Scarce, none in OCLC collections worldwide.

Souvenir Program, published by the Council of Organizations, Meridian, Mississippi, 1974. First edition, first printing. Organized by C. E. Oatis, Jr. Softcover, illustrated paper wrappers, side staple bound, 11" x 8.5", 110 pages, illustrated throughout with historic b&w photographs, portraits and advertisements of members of Meridians Black Social and Fraternal Clubs and many Black community business advertisers. GOOD CONDITION: covers pulling/tearing from the staples but still attached, covers have wear, light creasing, small spotting and penned contact info, internally, some penned name and addresses, and light signs of wear from age and use, overall a respectable copy of this historic documentation of the Black urban and cultural landscape in 1974 Mississippi. Scarce, none in OCLC collections worldwide.

The African American Business District provided services that Meridian's Black community could not otherwise receive. Jim Crow laws that were passed across the country from 1876 to 1965 kept most of Meridian's businesses segregated. Many white owned businesses either refused to serve Black customers or served them on a limited basis. Beginning around the turn of the 20th century, pioneering African American businesspeople stepped forward to fill the needs of their community. The Council of Organizations formed in 1972 to promote the social, cultural, and educational interests of the African American community in Meridian. With representation from Black civic, social, business, professional, fraternal, and educational clubs, the Council provides scholarships and hosts the celebrated Meridian Picnic each year in Meridian or host regions. Long time Black Community leader and educator C. E. Oatis, Jr. (1925-2011) served as President of the National Council of Meridianiates for 30 years.

1983 Retrospective of Black Dance in America. A landmark dance festival at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) celebrating Black Dance, Blackness and the African Diaspora featuring performances reflecting the richly diverse traditions of African American dance.

DANCE BLACK AMERICA Souvenir Program April 21 - 24, 1983

Published by the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Brooklyn, New York, 1983. First edition, first printing. Softcover, illustrated wraps, side staple bound, 8.5" x 10", 47 pages, includes the festival program, articles by festival panelists, bibliography, filmography, and is illustrated with historic b&w photographs. VERY GOOD CONDITION: front cover has a penned date, light wear from age and use, otherwise tight, bright, clean and unmarked. Also included is the 1984 touring program, 16 pages with five articles and b&w photographs reprinted from the original 1983 program, plus a six panel folding BAM mailer advertising the 1984 encore of Dance Black America with a street party event "Sweet Saturday Night".

A dynamic presentation of African American dance celebrating over 300 years of Black dance featuring legendary Black dancers, choreographers, scholars, and dance companies. The performances covered key ethnic, modern and theater dance concert works by trailblazing Black choreographers from Asadata Dafora, Alvin Ailey, Katherine Dunham, and Blondell Cummings. Street and Social dance performances include the Catwalk to Breakdancing, and the Juba through Mama Lu Parks.

The performers include The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (featuring Donna Wood and Gary DeLoatch), Garth Fagan's Bucket Dance Theater, Mama Lu Park's Jazz Dancers, The Charles Moore Dance Theater, The Chuck Davis Dance Company, Eleo Pomare, Chuck Green, The Magnificent Force, The Jazzy Jumpers, Al Perryman, Leon Jackson, Halifu Osumare, Dejan's Olympia Brass Band of New Orleans, Rudy Stevenson Band, Ruth Brisbane, BISS Harmonizers, Fab 5 Freddy, Arthur Hall's Afro American Dance Ensemble, Baba Chuck Davis, Rock Steady Crew, and many more.

Kappa Beta Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Presents "FASHIONETTA" 1986, 1988, and 1990 DEBUTANT BALL PROGRAMS

THREE SOUVENIR PROGRAMS, published by Kappa Beta Omega, Vallejo, California, 1986, 1988, 1990. First editions. Illustrated softcovers, 11" x 8.5", pink tinted paper, 208, 142, 151 pages respectively, featuring the b& w portraits of the Debutantes, their escorts, short biographies of each of the Debutantes that showcase their service to the community and educational activities, also Advertisements, many illustrated, from family, friends, community members, and local businesses in support of this group of young Black women. The Ball culminates in the crowning of "Miss Fashionetta." Also included are some invitations, programs and tickets. The 1986 and 1988 programs are in VERY GOOD CONDITION: just some light wear from age and use, overall tight, bright, clean and unmarked, as are the invitations, program and ticket. The 1990 Program is in GOOD CONDITION: with nail polish stains, corner creases and chips on the covers, internally some light wear from handling and some corner-tip creases, otherwise tight, bright, clean and unmarked. An uncommon group of vintage programs documenting the young Black Sorority Women of the San Francisco Bay Area's East Bay region.

Alpha Kappa Alpha was the first Greek sorority founded by African American women. Established on January 15, 1908 at Howard University by nine Black students wishing to create an organization for college educated women that would support their academic and personal goals. The Vallejo California's Kappa Beta Omega Chapter in the Bay Area's Solano County is known for their community service and sponsorship of Fashionetta, an annual event during which African American high school girls in their senior year compete for college scholarships by engaging in various academic and civic activities. The Ball is a fundraiser for the Kappa Beta Omega chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, the Debutante program is open to a select group of young Black ladies who are high school seniors or local college freshmen.

POPULAR DANCE IN BLACK AMERICA

Dance Research Journal Congress on Research in Dance. Spring 1983. Published by the State University of New York, Purchase, New York, 1983. First edition, first printing. Sally Banes, Editor. Softcover, illustrated wrappers, side staple bound, 10.75" x 8.25", 60 pages, illustrated with b&w throughout. VERY GOOD CONDITION: covers have light toning to the margins and a touch of light wear, overall tight, bright, clean and unmarked. Uncommon.

A literary journal on the history and critical theory of dance. This issue features articles and photographs on popular dance in the Black community. Authors include African American Dance Specialist Katrina Hazzard-Gordon. Articles include "Swinging at the Savoy," "Between Two Eras Norton and Margot in the Afro American Entertainment World," "Afro American Core Culture Social Dance: An Examination of Four Aspects of Meaning," and "Disco: Afro American Vernacular Performance."

African American dance styles dominated American dance by the end of the 20th century. Over the first 200 years recognizable American dance styles progressed slowly through a blending of African and European movement and musical forms. By the end of the 1890s a distinct pattern emerged where dances created in Black communities spread out to the American mainstream such as the Charleston in the 1920s and hiphop freestyle in the 1970s and 1980s.

THE MOVEMENT - DOCUMENTARY OF A STRUGGLE FOR EQUALITY. Text by LORRAINE HANSBERRY. Filled with PHOTOS of SIXTIES CIVIL RIGHTS BATTLES with POLICE and Others.

Published by Simon & Schuster, New York, 1964. FIRST PRINTING, so stated on the copyright page.

COPY of the Friends of SNCC, with its ink stamp on the half-title page: "Long Beach Area / Friends of S.N.C.C." The Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee worked to assist Black activists in their struggle for equality in the sixties

AND

COPY of LELAND COLE, with his signature and date "1965" on the inside front cover. Leland Cole was a LEAD INVESTIGATOR for the ANTI-CIVIL RIGHTS MISSISSIPPI SOVEREIGNTY COMMISSION. He was reportedly responsible for stirring up lots of white anger.

Softcovers, 8.5" x 11", 127 pages. ILLUSTRATED throughout with historic b&w photographs.

GOOD CONDITION, the covers have shelf-rubs, superficial scrapes, edge, spine-end and corner-tip wear, and general signs of handling, but remain sturdy and bright; internally the pages are tight, bright, clean and unmarked. A solid, presentable copy of this important work.

SCARCE with the ASSOCIATION to the SNCC and to MISSISSIPPI'S SEGREGATIONIST SOVEREIGNTY COMMISSION.

About the SNCC (from Wikipedia):

******The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee "SNCC" was the principal channel of student commitment in the United States to the civil rights movement during the 1960s. Emerging in 1960 from the student-led sit-ins at segregated lunch counters in Greensboro, North Carolina, and Nashville, Tennessee, the Committee sought to coordinate and assist direct-action challenges to the civic segregation and political exclusion of African Americans. From 1962, with the support of the Voter Education Project, SNCC committed to the registration and mobilization of black voters in the Deep South.******

About the MISSISSIPPI SOVEREIGNTY COMMISSION (from Wikipedia):

******The Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission was a state agency in Mississippi tasked with fighting integration and controlling civil rights activism...The Sovereignty Commission spied on and conspired against civil rights activists and organized pressure and economic retaliation against those who supported the civil rights movement in Mississippi. Principal investigators for the Sovereignty Commission were Virgil Downing, LELAND COLE, Fulton Tutor, Edgar C. Fortenberry, and James Mohead. They frequently relied upon informants, who were often compensated as much as $500 a month.******

About LELAND COLE (from "The Black Freedom Struggle in Claiborne County, Mississippi", by Emilye Crosby, University of North Carolina Press, 2006 - pages 204 and 227.):

******Despite Charles Evers's early January offer to discuss a settlement [to an African-American led boycott], whites opened the New Year with repression, not negotiation. SOVEREIGNTY COMMISSION INVESTIGATOR LELAD COLE, who George Walker observed "was constantly stirring up the people in the community," initiated a high-pressure campaign to undermine the Evers' led boycott.

The presence of civil rights lawyers let white officials know that others were monitoring their actions. For example, in January 1967, when Sovereignty Commission investigator LELAND COLE was using widespread arrests to try to break the Port Gibson boycott, he was concerned enough about the Lawyers' Committee to report that the "arrests are valid and we see that each case is built by enough witnesses to withstand the defense put up by civil rights lawyers from Jackson."******

THE COOK'S HANDY ANDY By H. A. TURNER

A curious, pocket size Southern Cookbook containing recipes that presume a high level of culinary knowledge and are written with ingredients and instructions intermingled. It appears to be written in the Pullman tradition of African American Chefs. Pullman Porters were the Black men who staffed the luxury first class Pullman cars on the railroads for over a century. After emancipation, African American men and women were hired to work in the kitchens of hotels, on Pullman railroad cars, and in restaurants.

"I have made an earnest effort in this book to offer to the cooks working in the commercial or plain houses, suggestions and ways of preparing the ingredients called for, in simple, quick, wholesome styles. Yours truly, H. A. Turner"

Published by H. A. Turner Book Shop, Little Rock, Arkansas, 1939. Revised edition, originally published 1932. Softcover, textured black cloth over flexible card, 6.25" x 3.5", 240 pages. VERY GOOD CONDITION: lightly used and light fore-edge shorelining, otherwise tight, bright, clean and unmarked. Scarce. The OCLC shows only one copy in collections worldwide. A pocket compendium with well over 1500 recipes. From Potted Heart and Battered Brains to Pecan Pies and Croquettes of Beef, Frog Legs, Lobsters and Geese, to Fried Fish Shanghai Style, Ravioli Italian Style, Veal Hash O'Brien, Tacos, Creole Sandwiches, and pages of Sauces. These recipes are written for the accomplished chef who has definitely mastered their craft.

"BATTERED HEART - Cut slices of boiled heart, dip them in batter, fry in hot grease. Serve with onion tomato sauce, pickle sauce, horseradish sauce, vinaigrette vegetable sauce, cheese brown sauce, cheese brown sauce, cheese tomato sauce, mustard sauce, hot slaw, fried sauerkraut kraut, etc"

This is for TWO COPIES (buyer gets both copies) of:

NEGRO CIVIL RIGHTS IN CALIFORNIA: 1850, by David L. Snyder.

Keepsake printed by Roger Levenson at the TAMALPAIS PRESS for the members of the Sacramento Book Collectors Club 1969. Small-press fine-printing,"Special Publication No. 10", limited to only 300 copies.

Fine-printing pamphlet, white rag paper covers, red title lettering, side-stapled, 7x10 inches, 12 pages.

A brief history and vivid example of the limited legal rights of Negroes in California to testify against white men. This situation lasted until the testimony law was repealed in 1863. Included in this keepsake is a holograph reproduction of the 1850 sworn testimony of Sarah Carroll who claimed that William H. Potter stole jewelry and money from her. The keepsake also has a transcript of her testimony, as well as the results of her testimony (William Potter was arrested). Sarah Carroll was a brave woman.

Both keepsakes are in VERY GOOD or better condition, one has some light creasing to its top edge, else tight, bright, clean and unmarked.

About this keepsake (from WorldCat):

*******Sarah Carroll, a "free woman of color" brought a complaint against W.H. Potter on the charge of grand larceny for the theft of $700 and other articles of value. The documents of the case appear in this publication in both type and facsimile.******

The Herman A. English Golf Classic, Inc. Presents A National Salute To LEE ELDER. Scarce Event Program

Published by Herman A. English Enterprises, Los Angeles, California, 1977. First edition. Illustrated softcover, side staple bound, 11" x 8.5", 20 pages, illustrated throughout with b&w photographs of the award recipient, celebrity guests and Black Los Angeles business people. Also contains an interesting compendium of Black owned Los Angeles businesses circa 1977. VERY GOOD CONDITION: a touch of light wear, overall tight, bright, clean and unmarked. Scarce. None in OCLC collections worldwide.

Held at the Bonaventure Hotel in Los Angeles to honor Professional African American Golfer Lee Elder with the first annual Herman A. English Humanitarian Award for his service to Black youth through Lee Elder's Scholarship Foundation. It was much harder for Black golfers to go Pro mostly because they couldn't play the great courses that prepare white golfers for competition. College is an important opportunity, and this well attended scholarship event raised a lot of money for young Black college bound golfers.

PLANTATION BIRD LEGENDS, by MARTHA YOUNG, with illustrations by J.M. Condé.

NEW YORK: R. H. Russell, 1902. First edition, first printing, with the statement "First Impression, October, 1902" on the copyright page with no indication of additional printings.

The book is dedicated 'To all the Dear Namesakes of E.Y. and A.E.Y.' (Elisha Young and Anne Eliza Young, Martha Young and her siblings' parents.)

SIGNED and INSCRIBED by the AUTHOR, MARTHA YOUNG, to her SISTER, ANN ELIZA MUCKLE, on the front free endpaper:

"To Ann Eliza Muckle / One of the Namesakes / With the love of her sister / Martha Young".

LAID-IN is a HANDWRITTEN LETTER by Martha Young to her sister "Mrs. Alfred Muckle". It is written on 1 1/2 pages of a 4 page single fold sheet of paper. Much of the handwriting is indecipherable to me, but here is how it begins: "Dearest Fredie: / This may be a help to you. If Fettie comes through and I see her I will ask if she has the book of..." The letter is signed/initialed M.Y. and dated (?) 20, 1934. On the folded backside it is addressed to Mrs. Alfred Muckle / Courtesy of Agnes Tutwiler". (AGNES TUTWILER was a relative of Martha Young; FREDIE likely was Martha Young's nickname for her married sister.)

Hardcover Book, illustrated covers, 249 pages. ILLUSTRATED with a frontispiece photograph "Witch Menées Child" and 27 b&w drawings. Though the drawings and their captions are meant to illustrate the folktales and dialects of Southern Blacks (mostly former slaves), and were widely admired by writers of the day, many would be considered racist today.

FAIR condition. The covers are soiled with a scattering of scrapes, the rear cover has some water staining to its bottom edge, the spine is substantially scraped and rubbed; nonetheless the covers are still solid and doing their job. Internally, the front inner hinge is cracked but holding well, there is foxing primarily to the first and last few pages, light finger smudges here and there, and one page has a thumbprint size chip to its front margin (not affecting text) and another with a 2 inch closed tear, else the inner pages remain tight, clean, clear and unmarked. All 27 b&w plates are present, a few have a bit of foxing. The laid-in letter has folds, creases, smudging and some stains, but the text remains clear (though the handwriting is difficult).

About MARTHA YOUNG (from Wikipedia and the Alabama Women's Hall Of Fame websites):

******Martha Strudwick Young, b.1862 d.1941, was an American regionalist writer known for her recounting of Southern folk tales, fables, and songs of Black life in the plantation era. She was admired by other writers for her skill with dialect. Young was inducted into the Alabama Women's Hall of Fame in 1986.

Martha Strudwick Young was the daughter of Confederate surgeon Elisha Young and Anne Eliza Ashe (Tutwiler) Young. The women's education and prison reform advocate Julia Strudwick Tutwiler was her aunt. Her family moved to Greensboro after the Civil War, and it was there that she learned the Southern folk tales and stories of African-American culture that would form the basis of her writings.

In 1901 Young published her first book, Plantation Songs for My Lady's Banjo and Other Negro Lyrics & Monologues. She followed up in 1902 with Plantation Bird Legends, which established her reputation as a leading writer of dialect tales. Young was one of a group of regional writers who helped to popularize the use of dialect as an adjunct to realism, including George Washington Cable, Kate Chopin, Mary Noailles Murfree, and Joel Chandler Harris. She has been called "Alabama's foremost folklorist."

From her 1986 induction into the Alabama Women's Hall of Fame: "During a life which bridged two centuries, she recorded a rapidly disappearing culture, preserving it as a heritage for future generations."******

Hand SIGNED by African American Composer and Blues Musician W. C. HANDY in ink on the ffep.

UNSUNG AMERICANS SUNG Edited by W. C. HANDY. Published by Handy Brothers Music Co., Inc. New York City [rubber stamped], 1944. First edition, First printing. Hardbound in original dark blue textured cloth with gilt printing on the front cover, 11" x 7.5", 236 pages, illustrated with a photographic frontispiece portrait of Handy, two full page photographic illustrations, and eight full page illustrations of African Americans from sketches by Beauford De Laney, and musical scores. VERY GOOD CONDITION: a few droplet stains and light wear to the covers, internally, toning to the pastedown and a penned gift inscription from the former owner Kitty Dalton, a chorus girl for Billy Rose on the ffep, otherwise tight, bright, clean and unmarked.

Handy's important musical and cultural collection of song tributes to outstanding African Americans, explores the different dimensions of musical development that exist within Black culture, while also highlighting the struggle and triumph that exist for people of color. Includes poetry, illustrations, children's songs, choral works, scenes from major works, and art songs. Handy, the "Father of the Blues" composed the music for Phillis Wheatley poetry, and collaborated with Langston Hughes on a number of his poems as did Margaret Bonds, there are over 30 contributors including jazz luminaries Eubie Blake, James P. Johnson, Andy Razaf, Luckey Roberts and Ismay Andrews.

William Christopher Handy (1873-1958) born to former slaves, W. C. Handy was one of the first to compose, play and publish a steady stream of blues, spiritual arrangements, marches, hymns, and miscellaneous songs. His collections include Blues: An Anthology (1941), and A Book of Negro Spirituals (1938). His books include: Negro Authors and Composers of the United States (1936), Father of the Blues (1941), and Unsung American Sung (1944).

Beauford De Laney (1901-1979) Noted African American Artist.

RIGHT ON! A Documentary on Student Protest by Maryl Levine, John Naisbitt, Graphic Design by David L. Burke

Published by Bantam Books, New York, London, Toronto, 1970. First edition. Softcover, illustrated wrappers, 7" x 4", 249 + (7) pages, graphically illustrated throughout with b&w photographs, illustrations and stylized text. GOOD Condition: light shelfwear and some creases to the covers, the spine has a few creases but the binding remains sturdy, 2 penned remainder lines on bottom page edges (edge of the closed book), internally the upper corner has some light shorelining, otherwise tight, bright, clean and unmarked. A solid, respectable copy.

Illustrated in a graphic style similar to the influential Marshall McLuhan book "The Medium Is the Massage." A book design classic "Right On!" is a powerful visual collage of black & white photographs, graphics and text that captures the radical student protests of 1969 from fights for civil rights, Black Power, student power, Black studies programs and racial diversity to anti Vietnam War rallies and altercations with police. "Black studies are inevitable. Period."

This vintage counterculture monograph is based on a 1969 study of over 200 US college campuses conducted by the Urban Research Corporation of Chicago, a private commercial organization that monitored contemporary trends and prepared reports for a range of groups and institution. These protests occurred on campuses of all sizes and in every region of the country, but most occurred in large universities with more than 1,000 students.

Congressional Black Caucus, 103rd Congress, 1993-1994 : Members, Committee Assignments, Staff Contacts

The Congressional Black Caucus was formed in 1970 when the 13 Black Members of the U.S. House of Representatives joined together to strengthen their efforts to address the legislative concerns of Black and minority citizens. African American Representatives had increased in number from six in 1966 to nine, following the 1969 elections. Those Members believed that a Black Caucus in Congress, speaking with a single voice, would provide political influence and visibility far beyond their numbers.

Published by the Congressional Black Caucus, A Legislative Service Organization, Washington D.C., 1993. First edition, printed in an unnumbered limited edition for Caucus members and their staff. Illustrated softcovers, side staple bound, 8.5" x 6.75", 88 unnumbered pages including covers, each Caucus member has a two page spread that includes their biography and a black & white photographic portrait. VERY GOOD Condition: light shelfwear and a touch of age, otherwise tight, bright, clean and unmarked. Scarce, just 2 copies in OCLC collections worldwide.

The African American Legislators in this 1993-94 Congressional Black Caucus compendium are the Honorable: Kweisi Mfume, Cardiss Collins, Alcee L. Hastings, William Jefferson, Barbara-Rose Collins, Eddie Bernice Johnson, Carol Moseley-Braun, John Conyers, William Clay, Louis Stokes, Ronald V. Dellums, Charles B. Rangel, Harold E. Ford, Julian C. Dixon, Major R. Owens, Edolphus Towns, Alan Wheat, Floyd Flake, John Lewis, Donald M. Payne, Craig A. Washington, Gary A. Franks, Eleanor Holmes-Norton, Maxine Waters, Lucien E. Blackwell, Eva Clayton, Sanford D. Bishop, Jr., Corrine Brown, James E. Clyburn, Cleo Fields, Earl F. Hilliard, Cynthia A. McKinney, Carrie Meek, Mel Reynolds, Bobby Rush, Robert C. "Bobby" Scott, Walter R. Tucker III, Melvin L. Watt, Albert Russell Wynn, and Bennie Thompson.

NEGRO PRESS Rare 1938 AFRICAN AMERICAN Thesis BLACK NEWSPAPERS Racism POLITICS

Written by a Black Scholar earning his Master thesis in 1938, this one of the earliest and most thorough studies of the African American Press and Black Newspapers that were published between 1876 and 1936. It identifies the racism and politics that affected Black newspapers, explores the lack of coverage for Black social issues, and examines troubles with white newspapers. The Black press was critical in expanding the sphere of influence for Black leaders and increasing awareness of the Black experience.

THE NEGRO PRESS OF KANSAS by Rashey B. Moten, Jr. Includes "Chronological List of Negro Newspapers In Kansas from 1876 to 1938." Unpublished Master's Thesis, University of Kansas, written in 1936, approved 1938. Softcover, 8.5" x 11", velo bound document, 130 photocopied pages printed on one side only. NEAR FINE Condition: the vintage photocopied pages have the usual copy machine marks, smudges, and variations in brightness, as well as light signs of age and use, overall tight, bright, clean, and unmarked. Scarce.

Rashey Burial Moten, Jr. (1913-2000) the first African American to lead a Catholic Charities organization, Executive Director at Catholic Charities Kansas City Saint Joseph from 1970 to 1981. President Carter appointed Moten to the Advisory Committee for the White House Conference on Families. Moten was instrumental in launching Head Start in 1965 under President Lyndon B. Johnson.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MASSACHUSETTS 1873.

Rare Photo Book filled with small photographic portraits of the 1873 Massachusetts House of Representatives. Most notable is it Includes the African-American LEWIS HAYDEN, an ex-slave who escaped with his wife Harriet from Kentucky to Canada, then moved to Boston where he was an abolitionist, and where he and his wife were an important part of the Underground Railroad. The Lewis and Harriet Hayden house is now a National Historic Site on Boston's Black Heritage Trail.

Original hardcovers, 3/4 leather (spine and corners), gilt page edges, marbled endpapers, 8x8.5 inches oblong, with 12 cardstock leaves (24 pages) with mounted photo plates. Hayden Lewis, representative from Boston, is the only African-American. It was his only term.

VERY GOOD condition, rubs and scrapes to the leather spine and corners, otherwise tight, bright, clean, clear and unmarked. A solid, lovely copy of this important historic record.

About LEWIS HAYDEN (extracted from Wikipedia):

******Lewis Hayden, b.1811 d.1889, was a slave who had a number of different owners. At one point his first wife and son were purchased by U.S. senator Henry Clay, who sold them to slavers in the deep South. Hayden never saw them again. He later remarried. In 1844 he and his family escaped Kentucky and fled to Canada with the aid of Kentucky abolitionists Delia Webster and Calvin Fairbank, both of whom upon their return were arrested and imprisoned. Hayden later moved to Detroit where he established a school and a church for African Americans, then went to Boston to aid in the abolition movement. In Boston he was an abolitionist lecturer and businessman. He and his wife, Harriet Hayden, were an important part of Boston's Underground Railroad, helping numerous fugitive slaves, often sheltering them at their house.

In 1873 Lewis Hayden was elected as a Republican representative from Boston to the Massachusetts state legislature. He helped found numerous Black lodges of Freemasons. Located on the north side of Beacon Hill, the Lewis and Harriet Hayden House has been designated a National Historic Site on the Black Heritage Trail in Boston.******

About the LEWIS AND HARRIET HAYDEN HOUSE (from the National Park Service website):

******The Lewis and Harriet Hayden House at 66 Phillips (formerly Southac) Street served as the preeminent Underground Railroad safe house in Boston during the 1850s. In the 1840s, the Haydens escaped slavery in Kentucky and eventually settled in Boston. They lived in this house by 1850, operated it as a boarding house, and turned it into one of the most documented safe houses in the area.******

PLEASE READ THE FULL LEWIS HAYDEN WIKIPEDIA PAGE and take a look at the many other articles about him and his wife HARRIET HAYDEN to be found on the Internet.

This is a landmark civil rights trial in which the plaintiff claims to have been unconstitutionally subjected to cruel and unusual punishment by the conditions at Soledad prison in 1965.

Robert Charles Jordan, Jr., Plaintiff v. C. J. Fitzharris et al, Defendants. Published by the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, September 6, 1966. Memorandum Opinion and Order by U.S. District Court Chief Judge George B. Harris. Legal document, stapled bound typewritten sheets, 8.5" x 11", 22 pages. VERY GOOD Condition: light age toning, a small paperclip stain, tiny edge tears to rear cover, otherwise tight, bright, clean and unmarked.

In 1966 a Black prisoner named Robert Charles Jordan, Jr. filed a lawsuit against the Superintendent of Soledad prison charging "cruel and unusual" punishment. What was surprising about this case was that the court found in Jordan's favor. Mr. Jordan was locked in solitary confinement in a "strip cell" at Soledad Prison. The complaint goes on to detail many more inhumane conditions and treatment. After the court ruled that Jordan had in fact been subjected to cruel and unusual punishment, the Superintendent of Soledad, Cletus Fitzharris, remained at the head of the prison for 5 more years. He was then promoted to deputy director of the California Department of Corrections. Robert Charles Jordan Jr. was born in 1939 and was 27 years old when he filed this case. He had been convicted at age 19 of assault and has remained, as of 2020, incarcerated in a California prison. The Eighth Amendment prohibits the infliction of cruel and unusual punishment. The Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s pushed (at national, and local levels and in legislatures and courts) to recognize that the government disproportionately policed, incarcerated, and oppressed people of color and the economically disadvantaged. Court litigation records like this detail the horrific treatment incarcerated people continue to endure in prison.

The Prophet And Other Paintings by Alvin Hollingsworth

ALVIN HOLLINGSWORTH first attracted widespread critical acclaim with this exhibition, The Prophet Series, that went from the Harbor Gallery, Long Island to the Studio Museum in Harlem in 1970. Romare Bearden positively reviewed the exhibition in the October 17, 1970 issue of the New York Amsterdam News. In a 1971 Ebony magazine interview, Hollingsworth said, "I have always felt that Christ was a Black man," and said the subject represented a "philosophical symbol of any of the modern prophets who have been trying to show us the right way. To me, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King are such prophets."

Rare Catalogue for the Prophet Series Exhibition, published by the Harbor Gallery, Cold Spring Harbor, New York, 1970. First Edition. Softcover, dark yellow textured card covers with black printing and tipped on color plate, 9" x 6", side staple bound, 12 unnumbered pages including covers, illustrated with 7 b&w photographs of Hollingsworth's paintings and a b&w photographic portrait of the artist. NEAR FINE Condition: tight, bright, clean and unmarked. Scarce, only 11 copies in OCLC collections worldwide.

ALVIN C. HOLLINGSWORTH (1928-2000) Leading African American fine artist, trail blazing Black comic artist, painter, illustrator, abstract expressionist, best known for his paintings relating to civil rights issues, the experience of Blacks within the urban landscape, Black women's rights, jazz, spirituality, and dance. Founding member with Romare Bearden of the Spiral Group of African American artists who linked their creative expression to social justice, other prominent members included Charles Alston, Emma Amos, Earl Miller, Norman Lewis, Hale Woodruff, Richard Mayhew, and Reginald Gammon. As early as 1945 he was illustrating comic books for various publishers including Cat Man Comics, which were issued under his name and pseudonyms, by the early 1950's he successfully created his own nationally syndicated comic.