It’s no secret that the United States still has work to do when it comes to racial equality. The marginalization of Black Americans stretches back centuries, and the fight is still going — with members of the community at the forefront of the struggle. Here at BookTrib, we’ve compiled a list of books that highlight the efforts of five individuals committed to aiding their community. Featuring a public servant improving the lives of low-income persons across Alabama, lawyers fighting to overturn unjust sentences, a Black doctor striving for equality and understanding in the medical field and an educator and woman minister at Howard University, these authors have all found their calling in providing a better tomorrow for the members of their community.
Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption by Bryan Stevenson
From the very inception of his organization, the Equal Justice Initiative, founder and executive director Bryan Stevenson dove head-first into fighting for the rights of those the justice system had ignored — or worse, falsely condemned. His memoir, Just Mercy, traces back to his roots as a young lawyer taking on the daunting case of Walter McMillian, a Black man wrongfully sentenced to death for the high-profile murder of a white woman. An award-winner, New York Times bestseller and now a major motion picture, Just Mercy reminds us that the fight for justice is a constant battle, even against the institutions that claim to stand for integrity and fairness.
(Check out what other books we think would go along well with Just Mercy.)
Black Man in a White Coat: A Doctor's Reflections on Race and Medicine by Damon Tweedy M.D.
From the very start of his time at medical school, Damon Tweedy faced prejudice from teachers and students alike — as well as the curriculum itself. It seemed like every lecture had a refrain of “more common in blacks than in whites” when discussing certain diagnoses. Now an assistant professor of psychiatry at Duke University Medical Center and staff physician at the Durham VA Medical Center, he examines the history of racism within the medical field, and how that prejudice has negatively impacted Black patients and deprived them of essential medical care. In this thoughtful, perceptive memoir, Dr. Tweedy hopes to educate readers on the many hoops that Black patients and doctors alike must jump through in order to access and improve unbiased medical care.
The Coppinville Experience: From Poverty to God's Will by Frederick L. Hamilton
Frederick L. Hamilton’s gripping memoir highlights far more than just his career as a public servant, securing housing and safety for the impoverished and disenfranchised. He first starts with the history of his enslaved ancestors, the trauma of his great-grandmother and the lessons she imparted on her daughter — Hamilton’s own grandmother — on the importance of education. It was this emphasis on education that guided Hamilton to pursue a doctorate, giving him the chance to answer what he felt was God’s call to help those facing circumstances similar to those he faced as a child. The Coppinville Experience chronicles Hamilton’s work improving the lives of low-income persons across Alabama, and the strength to endure that his faith gave him.
Read our full review of The Coppinville Experience here.
In My Grandmother’s House: Black Women, Faith and the Stories We Inherit by Yolanda Pierce
Before she was the dean of Howard University School of Divinity, Yolanda Pierce was a girl nurtured by the women of the Black church — and the church mothers had good reason to shelter her from a world primed for tearing down Black women. Pierce was raised amongst the familiar comfort of tradition, but she also learned to understand the complexity of it, as a religion inherited from the days of slavery. As an adult, Pierce now reckons with being “a daughter of an imperfect thing we call the Black church” and her present role as an ordained woman minister and a voice of influence. In My Grandmother’s House highlights the often-unsung work of Black women in the church, and how she hopes to uplift the next generation using the wisdom and strength taught to her by the matriarchs who came before her.
The People’s Lawyer: A Radical Representation of Change, Courage and Commitment to Civil Rights by Bobby H. Caldwell
“I didn’t necessarily plan to become a civil rights attorney,” admitted Bobby H. Caldwell. “I only set out to find a way to get my people from under the weight of oppressions.” He still ended up becoming a trailblazing lawyer during the Civil Rights Movement, rising above his childhood in segregated Dallas to argue high-profile cases like that of Lee Otis Johnson, a man imprisoned on a 30-year charge for the possession of one joint of marijuana. Not only did Caldwell manage to overturn Johnson’s sentence, but he also received the opportunity to meet legends like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Rev. Jessie Jackson. While he sadly passed away earlier this year, Caldwell’s legacy remains as a man dedicated to the betterment of his community in Texas, and to fighting for equal rights for all of the United States.
Read the full review of The People’s Lawyer here.
