Before Martin Luther King or Malcolm X, Vernon Johns spoke out against racism and discrimination in America. Described as "God's Bad Boy", Johns fought for equal treatment of Black Americans long before the Civil Rights Movement. "A fearless man, he never allowed an injustice to come to his attention without speaking out against it." -Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Sit here! Stand there! Move when I tell you to move! Do what I say or I will call the police!For over a century, black riders were disrespected and treated unfairly on public transportation. This book tells the story of their fight for equality. From the horse-drawn trolleys of the late 1800s to the buses and trains of the 20th century, men and women, young and old, refused to accept second-class status.They sat where they weren't supposed to, refused to move, boycotted, go...

A startling and eye-opening look into America’s First Family, Never Caught is the powerful story about a daring woman of “extraordinary grit” (The Philadelphia Inquirer).When George Washington was elected president, he reluctantly left behind his beloved Mount Vernon to serve in Philadelphia, the temporary seat of the nation’s capital. In setting up his household he brought along nine slaves, including Ona Judge. As the President grew accustomed t...

Born in the United States and enslaved as a child, Harriet Tubman (circa 1820-1913) is one of the best-known figures connected to the Underground Railroad. Through her knowledge and outdoor survival skills, honed through her unpaid labour in the fields and through the later connections she made in the abolitionist community, Tubman was well poised to command her followers. By her discipline and example, she never lost a "passenger."Tubman's exploits helped to empower those opposed ...

Learn about the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with this revised edition of the popular Random House Step Up(TM) Biography of the great civil-rights leader and advocate for peaceful resistance --includes new text and additional dynamic photos. Perfect for reading level: 2.2.When Martin Luther King Jr., was growing up, he wasn't allowed to use the water fountains the white children drank from--and he didn't understand why. As he grew older, he studied hard and p...

From Midnight to Dawn presents compelling portraits of the men and women who established the Underground Railroad and traveled it to find new lives in Canada. Evoking the turmoil and controversies of the time, Tobin illuminates the historic events that forever connected American and Canadian history by giving us the true stories behind well-known figures such as Harriet Tubman and John Brown. She also profiles lesser-known but equally heroic figures such as Mary Ann Shadd, who bec...

"The Underground Railroad: Next Stop, Toronto! stands out as an engaging and highly readable account of the lives of Black people in Toronto in the 1800s. Adrienne Shadd, Afua Cooper and Karolyn Smardz Frost offer many helpful points of entry for readers learning for the first time about Black history in Canada. They also give surprising and detailed information to enrich the understanding of people already passionate about this n...

When the passage of the Abolition of Slavery Act, effective August 1, 1834, ushered in the end of slavery throughout the British Empire, people of the African descent celebrated their newfound freedom. Now African-American fugitive slaves, free black immigrants, and the few remaining enslaved Africans could live unfettered live in Canada -- a reality worthy of celebration.This new, well-researched book provides insight into the creation, development, and evolution of a distinct Afr...

Ontario’s African-Canadian Heritage is composed of the collected works of Professor Fred Landon, who for more than 60 years wrote about African-Canadian history. The selected articles have, for the most part, never been surpassed by more recent research and offer a wealth of data on slavery, abolition, the Underground Railroad, and more, providing unique insights into the abundance of African-Canadian heritage in Ontario. Though much of Landons research was published in the Ontario Histori...

In the early to mid-nineteenth century, Isaac Brown, a slave, was accused of the attempted murder of a prominent plantation owner, despite there being no evidence of his guilt. Brown, after enduring two brutal floggings, was shipped to a New Orleans slave pen. From there the resourceful Brown was able to make a daring escape to Philadelphia in the free state of Pennsylvania. His biggest error was writing a note informing his free wife and eleven children in Maryland of his whereabouts. The...

On December 1, 1955, 42-year-old Rosa Parks became the "Mother of the Civil Rights Movement" in America by refusing to give up her bus seat to a white passenger. On that day, Rosa, of mixed African-American, Muscogee Indian, and Scots-Irish ancestry, helped launch one of the most important movements of the 20th century. Born Rosa Louise McCauley in Tuskegee, Alabama, in 1913, Rosa attended the Montgomery Industrial School for Girls at the age of 11. Thanks in part to the education she rece...

In 1859, at the largest recorded slave auction in American history, over 400 men, women, and children were sold by the Butler Plantation estates. This book is one of the first to analyze the operation of this auction and trace the lives of slaves before, during, and after their sale. Immersing herself in the personal papers of the Butlers, accounts from journalists that witnessed the auction, genealogical records, and oral histories, Anne C. Bailey weaves together a narrative that brings t...