Philip Dray

Presents a narrative chronicle of American organized labor from the origins of the industrial age to the present, documenting the rise and fall of unions and the ongoing fight for workplace equality.

The Epic Story of Labor in America

There is Power in a Union

WINNER OF THE SOUTHERN BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD FOR NONFICTION • “A landmark work of unflinching scholarship.”—The New York Times This extraordinary account of lynching in America, by acclaimed civil rights historian Philip Dray, shines a clear, bright light on American history’s darkest stain—illuminating its causes, perpetrators, apologists, and victims. Philip Dray also tells the story of the men and women who led the long and difficult fight to expose and eradicate lynching, including Ida B. Wells, James Weldon Johnson, Walter White, and W.E.B. Du Bois. If lynching is emblematic of what is worst about America, their fight may stand for what is best: the commitment to justice and fairness and the conviction that one individual’s sense of right can suffice to defy the gravest of wrongs. This landmark book follows the trajectory of both forces over American history—and makes lynching’s legacy belong to us all. Praise for At the Hands of Persons Unknown “In this history of lynching in the post-Reconstruction South—the most comprehensive of its kind—the author has written what amounts to a Black Book of American race relations.”—The New Yorker “A powerfully written, admirably perceptive synthesis of the vast literature on lynching. It is the most comprehensive social history of this shameful subject in almost seventy years and should be recognized as a major addition to the bibliography of American race relations.”—David Levering Lewis “An important and courageous book, well written, meticulously researched, and carefully argued.”—The Boston Globe “You don’t really know what lynching was until you read Dray’s ghastly accounts of public butchery and official complicity.”—Time

The Lynching of Black America

At the Hands of Persons Unknown

A compelling history of the Reconstruction era is viewed from the perspective of America's first black members of Congress and their key role in promoting such reforms as public education for all children, equal rights, and protection from Klan violence in the wake of the Civil War, profiling such figures as Robert Smalls, Robert Brown Elliott, and P. B. S. PInchback.

The Epic Story of Reconstruction Through the Lives of the First Black Congressmen

Capitol Men

An award-winning historian tells the story of hunting in America, showing how this sport has shaped our national identity. From Daniel Boone to Teddy Roosevelt, hunting is one of America's most sacred-but also most fraught-traditions. It was promoted in the 19th century as a way to reconnect "soft" urban Americans with nature and to the legacy of the country's pathfinding heroes. Fair chase, a hunting code of ethics emphasizing fairness, rugged independence, and restraint towards wildlife, emerged as a worldview and gave birth to the conservation movement. But the sport's popularity also caused class, ethnic, and racial divisions, and stirred debate about the treatment of Native Americans and the role of hunting in preparing young men for war. This sweeping and balanced book offers a definitive account of hunting in America. It is essential reading for anyone interested in the evolution of our nation's foundational myths.

The Epic Story of Hunting in America

The Fair Chase

Seth Cagin

We Are Not Afraid is the story of the 1964 killing of James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner in Philadelphia, Mississippi, at the hands of Ku Klux Klansmen and the local cops. Described as "one of the best books on the civil rights movement," the murders it describes inspired the acclaimed film, Mississippi Burning. The events surrounding this seminal event have re-entered public debate due to the recent conviction of manslaughter by Klansman and Imperial Wizard, Edgar Ray Killen, for his part in orchestrating the murders. As America struggles to honestly confront its history of racism, there has never been a more timely moment to reissue this fully updated edition of We Are Not Afraid. From the roles played by such figures as Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert Kennedy to the remarkable courage of the Freedom Riders, this book relates the definitive story of a nation's ongoing battle for true democracy.

The Story of Goodman, Schwerner, and Chaney, and the Civil Rights Campaign for Mississippi

We Are Not Afraid

In the late sixties, Establishment Hollywood was jarred awake by the smash box-office popularity of Bonnie & Clyde, 2001: A Space Odyssey, & Easy Rider--maverick films that spoke to a vast new audience of young moviegoers. The film industry reacted with an all-out effort to court sixties youth by making anti-establishment movies filled with strong social commentary. Provocative films such as The Graduate, Medium Cool, M*A*S*H, A Clockwork Orange, Woodstock, Alice's Restaurant, The Strawberry Statement, & Billy Jack strayed far from the mainstream, yet defined the shape & essence of American cinema for the next decade. BORN TO BE WILD is both a narrative & critical history of this era. It tells how Hollywood addressed such issues as violence, campus revolt, sexual liberation, Watergate & the Vietnam War & how audacious young filmmakers in chronicling an age told the story of a generation. (Originally published by Harper & Row in 1984 as HOLLYWOOD FILMS OF THE 70s. "Intelligent...sensitive...crammed with welcome information."--The New York Times). Distributed by Baker & Taylor, Ingram & Brodart. Order direct from Coyote Press, an imprint of SIRS, Inc., P. O. Box 2348, Boca Raton, FL 33427-2348. Phone (800) 232-7477. FAX (407) 994-4704. Published by: Coyote.

Hollywood and the Sixties Generation

Born to be Wild

“We forget, living in this era of heavily patented research and closely guarded results, how wonderfully exciting the scientific world used to be. In Stealing God’s Thunder, the story of Benjamin Franklin’s invention of the lightening rod and the resulting consequences, that sense of wonder and excitement and even fear comes beautifully to life. Philip Dray does a remarkable job of illuminating the ever-fascinating Franklin and, more than that, the way that he, and his invention, helped create the new scientific world.” –Deborah Blum, author of Love at Goon Park: Harry Harlow and the Science of Affection Stealing God’s Thunder is a concise, richly detailed biography of Benjamin Franklin viewed through the lens of his scientific inquiry and its ramifications for American democracy. Today we think of Benjamin Franklin as a founder of American independence who also dabbled in science. But in Franklin’s day it was otherwise. Long before he was an eminent statesman, he was famous for his revolutionary scientific work, especially his experiments with lightning and electricity. Pulitzer Prize finalist Philip Dray uses the evolution of Franklin’s scientific curiosity and empirical thinking as a metaphor for America’s struggle to establish its fundamental values. Set against the backdrop of the Enlightenment and America’s pursuit of political equality for all, Stealing God’s Thunder recounts how Franklin unlocked one of the greatest natural mysteries of his day, the seemingly unknowable powers of electricity and lightning. Rich in historic detail and based on numerous primary sources, Stealing God’s Thunder is a fascinating original look at one of our most beloved and complex founding fathers.

Benjamin Franklin's Lightning Rod and the Invention of America

Stealing God's Thunder

A meticulously detailed portrait of Benjamin Franklin concentrates on his scientific experiments and discoveries and explores the implications of his empirical research and his revolutionary inventions for the evolution of American democracy. 25,000 first printing.

Biography of Ida B. Wells-Barnett, a journalist and teacher who wrote about and spoke against the injustices suffered by African-Americans.

The Daring Life of a Crusading Journalist

Yours for Justice, Ida B. Wells

A detailed portrait of Benjamin Franklin concentrates on his scientific experiments and discoveries and explores the implications of his empirical research and his revolutionary inventions for the evolution of American democracy.

Benjamin Franklin's Lightning Rod And the Invention of America

Journalist Ida B. Wells faces the greatest challenge of her life as a tireless crusader for justice and civil rights. In 1863, when Ida B. Wells was not yet two years old, the Emancipation Proclamation freed her from the bond of slavery. Blessed with a strong will, an eager mind, and a deep belief in America’s promise of “freedom and justice for all,” young Ida held her family together, defied society’s conventions, and used her position as a journalist to speak against injustice. But Ida’s greatest challenge arose after one of her friends was lynched. How could one headstrong young woman help free America from the looming “shadow of lawlessness”? Author Philip Dray tells the inspirational story of Ida B. Wells and her lifelong commitment to end injustice. Award-winning illustrator Stephen Alcorn’s remarkable illustrations recreate the tensions that threatened to upend a nation while paying tribute to a courageous American hero.

Philip Dray

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