Black Legacy: A History of New York's African Americans

Description: Discover the complete Black history of New York--from 1609 to the present--by the award-winning author of Breaking the Chains and Black Indians. For readers 12 and up.

Includes a new intro and last chapter with insights on modern-day movements like Black Lives Matter, plus 50+ historical maps, illustrations, and photos. Essential for NY teachers, librarians and teens.

From the arrival of the first enslaved Africans in New Amsterdam in 1609 to the Harlem Renaissance to the impact of #BLM, here is a concise and newly updated history of Black Americans in New York for readers 12 and up. Black Legacy reasserts the essential work of teacher and historian William Loren Katz, who was committed to documenting and uplifting the stories of Black Americans' courage and creativity, resilience and rebellion, especially for younger readers. A new introduction gives context to Katz's "full tableau of Black accomplishments and aspirations," and a new chapter brings the book up to the present day, considering the changing economic, cultural and political influences on Black New Yorkers. Black Legacy includes, chronologically,

• Black politicians and poets, abolitionists and athletes and activists, and the first Black children to attend public schools;
• Sojourner Truth, Paul Robeson, W.E.B. DuBois, Frederick Douglass, Marcus Garvey, Malcolm X, the Black Panthers, and others who fought for Black freedom;
• Shirley Chisholm, Madame C.J. Walker, NY's first Black mayor David Dinkins and many other businesspeople and politicians who brought dignity through their work toward equality;
• and the Black history of Seneca Village and Weeksville, the Savoy and Cotton clubs of the Jazz Age, Harlem Hospital where Martin Luther King Jr. nearly died, the African burial site at Trinity Church, and so much more.

Review Quotes: "Dispelling the myth of Northern progressivism, Katz offers a far more compelling account of the bravery and perseverance through which Black people resisted their own subjugation and, in so doing, indelibly altered New York history. Katz reminds us that New York history is Black history, and Black history is the history of New York. This is a book that should be read by all New Yorkers." --Haley Pessin, co-editor of Voices of a People's History of the United States in the 21st Century: Documents of Hope and Resistance

"Black people have a long and complex history in New York City and have influenced nearly every aspect of the city's life and culture.

"This comprehensive history by the late acclaimed historian Katz, originally published in 1997, has been reissued with an introduction by journalist Herb Boyd. The volume opens with "The Africans of New Amsterdam" and closes with "The Age of Obama and Black Lives Matter," a new chapter by Singer and Hinson. Records document the presence of Africans in what would become New York beginning in the early 1600s. Katz details the struggle to end slavery and the efforts of free Black people to build lives in the face of racism and discrimination. After the American Revolution, communities prioritized the growth of Black churches, educational institutions, and mutual aid organizations along with advocating for voting rights. Later chapters present the impact of major historical events, such as the Civil War Draft Riots and the World Wars, on the city's Black community. Katz skillfully weaves in the rise of Harlem and its cultural influence. Readers encounter familiar figures such as Frederick Douglass, Marcus Garvey, Malcolm X, and Shirley Chisholm. This extensive study is highly readable and effectively connects many stories in ways that shed light on Black New Yorkers' important place in the city's history and U.S. history as a whole.

"A valuable source for readers seeking insights into key components of the nation's past and present. (photo credits, notes, bibliography, index) (Nonfiction. 12-18)."
--Kirkus Reviews

"Rather than laying out a straightforward sequence of events, Katz deftly weaves the city's most recognizable figures into a dense self-referential history, illustrating how Black icons like Al Sharpton and Lorraine Hansberry engaged with their predecessors before making their own contributions to the culture." --New York Almanack