Books like Unexampled Courage by Richard Gergel

Justice lawyer Bryan Stevenson recounts his battle against wrongful convictions, life‑sentence juvenile cases, and systemic bias while seeking reform of America’s criminal justice system.

Douglas A. Blackmon exposes a hidden chapter of American history—an "Age of Neoslavery" that subjected African Americans to forced labor and debt slavery from the late 19th century through the 1940s.

An unflinching look at the 1955 lynching of Emmett Till, the case that ignited the modern civil‑rights movement, drawing on newly recovered court transcripts, FBI reports, and the only interview given by Carolyn Bryant.

Provides an overview of the role of African American soldiers in the Civil War, focusing on the establishment of the 54th Massachusetts Regiment and their role in the attack on Fort Wagner on Morris Island, South Carolina.

"This anthology of black writers traces the evolution of African-American perspectives throughout American history, from the early years of slavery to the end of the 20th century. The essays, manifestos, interviews, and documents assembled here, contextualized with critical commentaries from Marable and Mullings, introduce the reader to the character and important controversies of each period of black history." "The selections represent a broad spectrum of ideology. Conservative, radical, nationalistic, and integrationist approaches can be found in almost every period, yet there have been striking shifts in the evolution of social thought and activism. The editors judiciously illustrate how both continuity and change affected the African-American community in terms of its internal divisions, class structure, migration, social problems, leadership, and protest movements. They also show how gender, spirituality, literature, music, and connections to Africa and the Caribbean played a prominent role in black life and history."--BOOK JACKET.

Many mid 20th century American government programs created to help citizens survive and improve ended up being heavily biased against African-Americans. Katznelson documents this white affirmative action, and argues that its existence should be an important part of the argument in support of late 20th century affirmative action programs.

A compelling history of African Americans' struggle for civil rights and justice in the United States, from the early 19th century to the Civil War era.

Mary Frances Berry’s updated study examines how the U.S. Constitution has historically protected white power while marginalizing African Americans’ legal rights, from the 1619 arrival of slaves to the 1990s.

Mary L. Dudziak’s analysis of how Cold War policies influenced civil rights in the United States.