Synopses & Reviews
Patricia Stephens Due fought for justice during the height of the Civil Rights era. Her daughter, Tananarive, grew up deeply enmeshed in the values of a family committed to making right whatever they saw as wrong. Together, in alternating chapters, they have written a paean to the movement—its hardships, its nameless foot soldiers, and its achievements—and an incisive examination of the future of justice in this country. Their mother-daughter journey spanning two generations of struggles is an unforgettable story.
Synopsis
Tananarive's mother, Patricia Stephens Due, was a nineteen-year-old student at Florida A&M when she was arrested for trying to integrate a Woolworth's lunch counter and spent forty-nine days in jail. Here we have a daughter who sees her mother as heroic, stubborn, loving and difficult; a mother who, when she hears her daughter is going to a demonstration says "I went to jail so you wouldn't have to." "Freedom in the Family" is their story.
About the Author
Tananarive Due is a former features writer for the
Miami Herald. She has written many highly acclaimed novels, including
The Black Rose and
My Soul to Keep. She received a 2002 American Book Award for her novel
The Living Blood. Ms. Due makes her home in Longview, Washington, with her husband, novelist Steven Barnes.
Patricia Stephens Due was a civil rights activist with CORE while attending Florida A&M University. In 1960, based on her nonviolent stand during a landmark “jail-in,” she received the prestigious Gandhi Award. She is married to a civil rights lawyer, has three daughters, and continues to work for change in America. Over the years, she has conducted civil rights workshops and re-enactments for colleges, public schools, civic groups, and churches. She lives in Miami, Florida, with her husband, John Due.
From the Hardcover edition.