Sweet Land of Liberty: The Forgotten Struggle for Civil Rights in the North

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Sweet Land of Liberty: The Forgotten Struggle for Civil Rights in the North

3.79 of 5 stars 3.79 · rating details · 67 ratings · 11 reviews

The struggle for racial equality in the North has been a footnote in most books about civil rights in America. Now this monumental new work from one of the most brilliant historians of his generation sets the record straight. Sweet Land of Liberty is an epic, revelatory account of the abiding quest for justice in states from Illinois to New York, and of how the intense nor...more The struggle for racial equality in the North has been a footnote in most books about civil rights in America. Now this monumental new work from one of the most brilliant historians of his generation sets the record straight. Sweet Land of Liberty is an epic, revelatory account of the abiding quest for justice in states from Illinois to New York, and of how the intense northern struggle differed from and was inspired by the fight down South.

Thomas Sugrue’s panoramic view sweeps from the 1920s to the present–more than eighty of the most decisive years in American history. He uncovers the forgotten stories of battles to open up lunch counters, beaches, and movie theaters in the North; the untold history of struggles against Jim Crow schools in northern towns; the dramatic story of racial conflict in northern cities and suburbs; and the long and tangled histories of integration and black power.

Appearing throughout these tumultuous tales of bigotry and resistance are the people who propelled progress, such as Anna Arnold Hedgeman, a dedicated churchwoman who in the 1930s became both a member of New York’s black elite and an increasingly radical activist; A. Philip Randolph, who as America teetered on the brink of World War II dared to threaten FDR with a march on Washington to protest discrimination–and got the Fair Employment Practices Committee (“the second Emancipation Proclamation”) as a result; Morris Milgram, a white activist who built the Concord Park housing development, the interracial answer to white Levittown; and Herman Ferguson, a mild-mannered New York teacher whose protest of a Queens construction site led him to become a key player in the militant Malcolm X’s movement.

Filled with unforgettable characters and riveting incidents, and making use of information and accounts both public and private, such as the writings of obscure African American journalists and the records of civil rights and black power groups, Sweet Land of Liberty creates an indelible history. Thomas Sugrue has written a narrative bound to become the standard source on this essential subject.(less)

Hardcover, 720 pages

Published November 4th 2008 by Random House (first published 2008)

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Apr 17, 2013 David Bates rated it 5 of 5 stars

Thomas Sugrues 2008 synthesis Sweet Land of Liberty: The Forgotten Struggle for Civil Rights in the North attempts to knit together the emerging urban histories. By focusing on the “forgotten struggle” of African Americans in the North Sugrue tells us that we can dispel the amnesia of a narrative of the Civil Rights Movement that turns “northward only in the mid and late 1960s, when cities exploded in riots and black power advocates burst onto the national scene” and frames the North as “the tra...more Thomas Sugrues 2008 synthesis Sweet Land of Liberty: The Forgotten Struggle for Civil Rights in the North attempts to knit together the emerging urban histories. By focusing on the “forgotten struggle” of African Americans in the North Sugrue tells us that we can dispel the amnesia of a narrative of the Civil Rights Movement that turns “northward only in the mid and late 1960s, when cities exploded in riots and black power advocates burst onto the national scene” and frames the North as “the tragic denouement of the otherwise triumphant civil rights struggle.” Sweet Land of Liberty marries a sweeping survey of the northern civil rights movement from the 1930s to the 1970s with an analysis of the impact of discrimination in housing, education and employment. Sugrue traces the origin of the northern civil rights movement to the 1930s, as organizing inspired by the New Deal rhetoric of positive rights to security and prosperity. “Devout churchwomen, lawyers, laborers, Democrats, Republicans, Socialists, and Communists marched together on picket lines, lobbied public officials, and joined in lawsuits against segregated housing and schools.” While local activism won early victories against segregated public accommodations, non-discrimination laws concerning employment generally took longer to implement and were often unenforced. Education proved a resilient challenge for northern activists, who won limited victories but were often unable to overcome the quiet gerrymandering of school districts to prevent segregated schools. Sugrue views residential segregation, created by the racial considerations of FHA policies, financial lenders and real estate agents, as the lynchpin of a system that continues to marginalize urban African Americans. It is from disappointment in the hollow victories of non-discrimination legislation and deteriorating economic prospects brought on by deindustrialization that the turn toward community control and Black Power arose. The conventional narrative of this development, that after “the bloody summers of the late 1960s, minorities and their well-intentioned liberal supporters embraced a pernicious identity politics that deepened America’s racial divide and destroyed the integrationists dream of a land where character, not skin color, mattered most” is undercut by the deeper history of race in the North, in which too often it was the commitment to non-discrimination which was skin deep.

Within this history Sugrue recontextualizes the Black Power movement, reframing it less as the rejection of an integrationist vision than as a tactic of political empowerment forged in response to the lack of an integrationist reality. In the longer sweep of history provided by Sugrue the dichotomy between integration and black power breaks down. Rather than dividing into two philosophically opposing ideologies they appear rather as differing tactics employed in an improvisational manner in reaction to the shifting political and economic environment. Skeptical of the real racial liberalism of the North, Sugrue sees the Black Power movement as significant for its transition from protest to the dedicated attempt to elected black politicians, the number of which rocketed from the hundreds into the thousands in the 1970s. Occupying positions of authority at the municipal level, these politicians were often able to deliver more jobs for African Americans in municipal services, but at the state and national levels they were unable to prevent the disinvestment in urban areas and the deterioration of public benefits that accompanied the rise of the conservative movement.
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Aug 01, 2011 John Rivera rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: history

When most students jump into American Civil Rights history, there is usually something very large missing--the north and the west. Sugrue does an amazing job at covering civil rights struggles outside the American south, especially with respect to housing, schooling, employment, and government contracts.

Sweet Land of Liberty is essentially a rude awakening. We all know about firehoses, dogs, and police brutality in Birmingham; and we've all heard about The Mississippi Summer of 1964; but what ha...more

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Aug 01, 2011 david rated it 3 of 5 stars

i'm ambivalent / frustrated about the politics rendered in this narrative. but nonetheless, it is a very very well done broad history that is a great introduction to these struggles. while not necessarily forgotten, they are certainly not as iconic as what the historical memory suggests is the civil rights movement. the book could have been strengthened by more attention to struggles sometimes associated with "Black Power" in the attempt to draw out more fluid and complex relationships between C...more

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Jun 27, 2012 Ice rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: afro-american, favorites

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. The struggle for racial equality in the North has been a footnote in most books about civil rights in America. Now this monumental new work from one of the most brilliant historians of his generation sets the record straight. Sweet Land of Liberty is an epic, revelatory account of the abiding quest for justice in states from Illinois to New York, and of how the intense northern struggle differed from and was inspired by the fight down South.

Thomas Sugrue’s panoramic view sweeps from the 1920s to...more The struggle for racial equality in the North has been a footnote in most books about civil rights in America. Now this monumental new work from one of the most brilliant historians of his generation sets the record straight. Sweet Land of Liberty is an epic, revelatory account of the abiding quest for justice in states from Illinois to New York, and of how the intense northern struggle differed from and was inspired by the fight down South.

Thomas Sugrue’s panoramic view sweeps from the 1920s to the present–more than eighty of the most decisive years in American history. He uncovers the forgotten stories of battles to open up lunch counters, beaches, and movie theaters in the North; the untold history of struggles against Jim Crow schools in northern towns; the dramatic story of racial conflict in northern cities and suburbs; and the long and tangled histories of integration and black power.

Appearing throughout these tumultuous tales of bigotry and resistance are the people who propelled progress, such as Anna Arnold Hedgeman, a dedicated churchwoman who in the 1930s became both a member of New York’s black elite and an increasingly radical activist; A. Philip Randolph, who as America teetered on the brink of World War II dared to threaten FDR with a march on Washington to protest discrimination–and got the Fair Employment Practices Committee (“the second Emancipation Proclamation”) as a result; Morris Milgram, a white activist who built the Concord Park housing development, the interracial answer to white Levittown; and Herman Ferguson, a mild-mannered New York teacher whose protest of a Queens construction site led him to become a key player in the militant Malcolm X’s movement.

Filled with unforgettable characters and riveting incidents, and making use of information and accounts both public and private, such as the writings of obscure African American journalists and the records of civil rights and black power groups, Sweet Land of Liberty creates an indelible history. (less)

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Jan 24, 2011 Thomas rated it 3 of 5 stars

A colossal undertaking. His writing style isn't quite as engaging as it could be, which makes this a slog at times. But there are many important stories in these pages.

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Apr 19, 2011 Erika Forth rated it 1 of 5 stars

Assigned this book twice. It's way too big but the topic is good. I only read a couple chapters.

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Jul 25, 2010 Landismom rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: all-politics-is-local

Full review here: http://landismom.wordpress.com/2010/0...

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Aug 08, 2009 Mary rated it 4 of 5 stars

It was a little slow going at first but after a few chapters, I really got into this book. I learned so much and it seems all the more applicable now that I'm living in Philadelphia. A very powerful reminder of how racism still exists and WHY it exists.

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Feb 02, 2009 Jsb rated it 3 of 5 stars

I thought Nicholas Lemann's "The Promised Land" accomplished more in fewer pages. This is a good history of an incredibly important, yet little studied topic, yet I felt like there was little to no original research in it.

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Dec 20, 2008 Katherine added it

Shelves: cities, race, not-owned

Finished reading except for the notes in back. It's excellent, I'll try to write some sort of review...

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Nov 30, 2012 Katie rated it 2 of 5 stars

The chapters are too long, with hardly little breaks in them. Some of the information was repetitive for me. Took me two months to get through this book. Thank goodness I got it at the dollar store.

Well researched and written, but the long chapters were a big turn off for me.

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