BLACK LIVES
Pairing highly qualified writers with subjects whose lives illuminate the breadth, diversity, and richness of Black experiences, the Black Lives series produces brief, authoritative biographies of individuals of African descent who profoundly shaped history.
New Releases
Web Exclusives
A Conversation with Trudier Harris on Bigger: A Literary Life
Bigger Thomas, the central figure in Richard Wright’s novel Native Son, eludes easy categorization. In Bigger: A Literary Life, Trudier Harris examines his continued relevance in debates over Black men and the violence… READ MORE
John Lewis’s Quest for the “Beloved Community”
John Lewis: In Search of the Beloved Community is the first full-length biography of civil rights hero and congressman John Lewis. Author Raymond Arsenault talks with us about his research… READ MORE
Honoring Black Histories and Experiences
Black History Month, or African-American History Month, was proposed in February of 1969 by students at Kent State University. Later to be federally recognized by President Gerald Ford in 1976,… READ MORE
Ep. 110 — Historian of Abolition R. J. M. Blackett on Samuel Ringgold Ward
This episode of our podcast features a conversation with historian R.J.M. Blackett about the 19th century newspaper editor, Congregational minister, and temperance advocate Samuel Ringgold Ward. Despite Ward’s prominent role in the… READ MORE
Derby History is Black History
Katherine C. Mooney— In the spring of 1955, the new Sports Illustrated made a bold choice and retained William Faulkner to cover the Kentucky Derby. The ’55 Derby turned out… READ MORE
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Learn more about how you can make a gift to support the publications within the Black Lives series.