A gripping tale of racial cleansing in Forsyth County; Georgia; and a harrowing testament to the deep roots of racial violence in America.Forsyth County; Georgia; at the turn of the twentieth century was home to a large African American community that included ministers and teachers; farmers and field hands; tradesmen; servants; and children. Many black residents were poor sharecroppers; but others owned their own farms and the land on which they’d founded the county’s thriving black churches.But then in September of 1912; three young black laborers were accused of raping and murdering a white girl. One man was dragged from a jail cell and lynched on the town square; two teenagers were hung after a one-day trial; and soon bands of white “night riders†launched a coordinated campaign of arson and terror; driving all 1;098 black citizens out of the county. In the wake of the expulsions; whites harvested the crops and took over the livestock of their former neighbors; and quietly laid claim to “abandoned†land. The charred ruins of homes and churches disappeared into the weeds; until the people and places of black Forsyth were forgotten.National Book Award finalist Patrick Phillips tells Forsyth’s tragic story in vivid detail and traces its long history of racial violence all the way back to antebellum Georgia. Recalling his own childhood in the 1970s and ’80s; Phillips sheds light on the communal crimes of his hometown and the violent means by which locals kept Forsyth “all white†well into the 1990s.Blood at the Root is a sweeping American tale that spans the Cherokee removals of the 1830s; the hope and promise of Reconstruction; and the crushing injustice of Forsyth’s racial cleansing. With bold storytelling and lyrical prose; Phillips breaks a century-long silence and uncovers a history of racial terrorism that continues to shape America in the twenty-first century. 36 illustrations
#21776 in Books Sharfstein Daniel J 2017-04-04 2017-04-04Original language:English 9.60 x 1.70 x 6.70l; .0 #File Name: 0393239411640 pagesThunder in the Mountains Chief Joseph Oliver Otis Howard and the Nez Perce War
Review
21 of 21 people found the following review helpful. I just finished the book tonight; ive read 5 ...By Rocky MedleyI just finished the book tonight;ive read 5 other books on this subject and this is the only one that told the history way before and after the war. a lot of information ;but it was very interesting;highly recommend1 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy TJGood book6 of 6 people found the following review helpful. I gave this book 5 stars because it is a ...By CustomerI gave this book 5 stars because it is a realistic insight into the minds of Chief Joseph and OOHoward. It is very readable and interesting. The only problem I had was the author's bias against the South and he makes it very evident in this book. He is one of "those people" who conjure up images of rich Southern planters who rape; beat and otherwise abuse their slaves...............................and yet he never really makes a statement about the abuse of the American Indians by the US government. That said; I came away with a real empathy for Chief Joseph and his people. The US army had no qualms about killing Indian women and children. I think the saddest part was that they never let the Nez Perce return to their homeland............................and Chief Joseph's bones were not laid to rest near his father's grave........................but then his father's skull was missing since a rancher had dug it up and gave it to his dentist brother to display in his office.........................................
