About the Book
INTRODUCTION
The authors began writing this book in 1974 and completed it in 1976; the material in the book is intended to provide an intimate insight into the life of blacks and few of their achievements in the sixties and seventies in America, strictly from the point of view of the authors, who themselves are "Black" African Americans.
The content may appear offensive and controversial to anyone who may holds a self-righteous outlook about life. The material of this book has been collected through various communications and messages of older relatives, coaches, teachers and various community elders. However, the prominent few that inspired the authors to include the content are Ms. Barbara Jordan, Mr. Hasting, Mrs. Lillian Reedy Bastine, Dr. Ira Bryant, Mr. Conrad O. Johnson, Mrs. Coach Billy Matthews, Coach Weldon Drew, President John F. Kennedy, Coach Collins Briggs, Coach Richie Guerin, Captain Van Leer Ribbink, Lt. Melton, Captain Joseph L. Coleman, Robert "Bob" Nesta Marley, "Fela" Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-Kuti, James Brown, Maya Angelou, and Muhammad Ali. Some books, magazines and journals about Blacks' history also deeply influenced the authors. The content of the researched written material is not quoted verbatim, however, some relevant points may have been paraphrased.
We have listed below the titles of some of the written material in the hope that they will serve as a reference for those readers who would like to further research the books and resources that helped in forming the author's viewpoints.
Resource List: You Forever, The Destruction Of Black Civilizations 5000 BC, The Ultimate Frontier, Roots The Saga Of An American Family, They Came Before Columbus, The Sidney Journal, Seagram's/Ebony Magazine 1976 Black History Calendar, Renegade South, History Of Unconventional Southerners, The Underground Railroad, From Slavery To Freedom and more all written about life and blacks from 1800 through 1976. We would like to reiterate that this book was written to provide an informative insight into the life of Black Americans during the Sixties and Seventies in America, for all people including African Americans.
We hope this book would surely enhance your understanding about the life of "Black" African Americans and help create a positive bond among all individuals. Thanks and enjoy the reading.
The Authors
Review :
The Root Of Race Classification & Racism The root of Race Classification and Racism is Fear; Racism, came to the forefront against people with African heritage thousands of years ago, when it was recognized that features of a race made a difference when it came to the offspring of mixed race couples, as the children will have features of the dominant African Heritage parent. Interracial sex and marriages have been historically controversial issues for races from their first known records. Monarchs insisted that in order to keep the bloodline as pure as possible, marriage was to be between other Monarchs of the same clan. And, in the event of non-availability of another royal of the same race and blood line, marriage was even allowed within a family, under exceptional circumstances, to ensure the purity of would-be offspring. In African culture, when children reached the age of fix in six, the girls and boys were separated and each sent to school like facilities where each was taught their traditional responsibilities. It was the duty of the men to hunt and the women prepared the food. What the women learned depended largely on her tribe's method of getting food. Most of the tribes were farmers or cattle raisers and if the men hunted big game, the woman learned to cook deer, lion, buffalo, elephant, etc. Each tribe specialized in a crop such as yams, rice, okra, corn, cabbage or spinach as a joint venture. The women learned to prepare the tribe's traditional dishes and made them more appealing by serving nuts, beans and vegetables in various ways. Sauces and spices were added to bring out the flavor of dull foods. Religion has played a major role in the evolution of cultures from the 1st recorded history and has significantly affected the lives of Blacks not only in America but even before they were brought to America from Africa. The Black churches are the oldest and largest Black organizations around the world, and leaders in the Black communities have come from all segments of black society, from millionaires to slaves, and everything in between. No matter how you look at it, Blacks have been a major part of American history and so is the Black church, at one time; its members were more than 20% of the total population of the nation. Most American Blacks have ancestors dating further back in American history than those of the Irish, Italians, Pollack's, Germans, Scandinavians and Spanish. To dress is to cover or adorn the body. The style of dress tells a lot about an individual such as his role in society, self-identity and the socialization process, etc. During the early settlement days of the New World, Whites brought with them not only their puritanical manners, but also the dress similarities of the Englishman. Their color patterns were very subdued (Black, Browns Navy, and Gray). As a rule, businessmen, secretaries, schoolteachers, librarians, etc. adhered to these color patterns. Those were the people who influenced the dress code for "respectable" people. It was established that any woman who wore colors such as red was a worldly woman and it was completely unheard of for a man to wear colors such as pink, light blue, green, etc. The United States is the only country in the world wherein the majority of the people really have opportunity to showcase talents they have developed. This does not mean they will always have the chance to earn a living performing their talents, nor does it mean that they will get credit for their talent, as many may deserve. Black people, through their talents in sports, music, entertainment, creativeness, inventions, etc., have given America many achievements that are used in the day-to-day lives of its citizens.
