Description
Book SynopsisPresents the Civil Rights Movement through the work of nine photographers who participated in the movement as activists with SNCC, SCLC, and CORE. Unlike images produced by photojournalists, these photographers lived within the movement and documented its activities by focusing on student activists and local people.
Trade ReviewThis book of photographs, interviews, and biographies pays homage to nine activist photographers associated with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee who advanced the US civil rights cause by documenting movement actions and backlashes. The photographs poignantly and brilliantly capture key events in the southern movement in the 1960s—protests, memorials for murdered activists and innocent children, exuberant songfests, marches, and bloody encounters. . . . A must-read. Summing Up: Essential." -
CHOICE"
This Light of Ours offers insightful commentary and a treasure trove of stunning images gleaned from the files of nine activist photographers, seven of whom were connected to the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. Based on a traveling exhibit designed by the Center for Documentary Expression & Art, this beautifully produced book highlights the understudied and often underappreciated visual dimension of the 1960s civil rights struggle. Confronting the artists and historical dimension of these photographs fifty years after their creation was an unforgettable and moving experience that I hope thousands of individuals will ultimately share." - Raymond Arsenault, author of
Freedom Riders: 1961 and the Struggle for Racial Justice and
The Sound of Freedom: Marian Anderson, the Lincoln Memorial, and the Concert That Awakened America"Movement photographers created a striking visual history of the black freedom struggle of the 1950s and 1960s. This superb collection of their best work will evoke powerful memories among those who lived through those turbulent times, while introducing a new generation to the courage and tenacity of local people determined to take charge of their destiny.
This Light of Ours should be required reading for all who believe in the possibilities of democracy." - John Dittmer, professor emeritus at DePauw University and author of
Local People: The Struggle for Civil Rights in Mississippi"This remarkable collection is as inspiring as it is instructive. A few iconic images are represented but most of these photos will be new to most readers. Collectively, they make palpable a moment of possibility, not fully realized but not fully missed either. Perhaps what is most striking is the way these photos capture the sheer determination of ‘ordinary’ people to be free. One caption says it best: ‘Strength where you might least expect it was often encountered . . . reflecting vitality and dignity in a society trying to strip it away." - Charles M. Payne, Frank P. Hixon Distinguished Professor in the School of Social Service Administration, University of Chicago, and coeditor of
Teach Freedom: Education for Liberation in the African American Tradition
