Unearthing Seeds of Fire

Unearthing Seeds of Fire
Author: Frank Adams
Publisher: John F. Blair, Publisher
Total Pages: 280
Release: 1975
Genre: Education
ISBN:

Unearthing Seeds of Fire is a thorough historical account of Highlander Folk School and the life of its founder Myles Horton. For any involved in adult education, as well as those interested in education through social movement, this book provides rich descriptions of the ideology, context, and philosophy of creating learning communities through collectivism. Frank Adams is particularly successful at painting a vivid picture of the sociopolitical atmosphere under which Horton created Highlander, describing the successes and failures that were realized over the years, as well as the organic evolution of the school as it responded to the changing needs of its students.

James A. Dombrowski

James A. Dombrowski
Author: Frank T. Adams
Publisher: Univ. of Tennessee Press
Total Pages: 396
Release: 1992
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 9780870497421

I read this book based on my reading of General Walker and the Murder of President Kennedy by Dr. Jeffry Caulfield. As portrayed in the Caulfield book, Dombrowski was in the eye of the segregationist hurricane which swept the South in the 1950's and 1960's following the Brown decision by the Supreme Court. This book gives a different perspective on the civil rights movement in the South. Such classics as Where Rebels Roost by Susan Klopfer and Gothic Politics in the Deep South by Robert Sherrill tend to give a condescending attitude toward the South. By contrast, Dombrowski describes a different version of events, a version which shows that the "behind the scenes" activities for Southern liberalization were very methodical and proceeded at a businesslike pace and with very steady progress all the way from the New Deal right up until the more radical 1970's. The book makes a case that, if there were actually such a thing as The New South, then Dombrowski had a very strong case for its paternity. Dombrowski, as many may already know, had close personal links to Justice Hugo Black of Alabama who was himself a pioneer of a more open-minded attitude to the race problem in the South.

The Myles Horton Reader

The Myles Horton Reader
Author: Myles Horton
Publisher: Univ. of Tennessee Press
Total Pages: 364
Release: 2003
Genre: Education
ISBN: 9781572332713

This book presents essays, speeches, and interviews, giving the reader a grounding in the pathbreaking work of an extraordinary man.

Highlander

Highlander
Author: John M. Glen
Publisher: University Press of Kentucky
Total Pages: 328
Release: 2014-07-15
Genre: Education
ISBN: 0813163250

and racial justice during a critical era in southern and Appalachian history. This volume is the first comprehensive examination of that extraordinary -- and often controversial -- institution. Founded in 1932 by Myles Horton and Don West near Monteagle, Tennessee, this adult education center was both a vital resource for southern radicals and a catalyst for several major movements for social change. During its thirty-year history it served as a community folk school, as a training center for southern labor and Farmers' Union members, and as a meeting place for black and white civil rights activists. As a result of the civil rights involvement, the state of Tennessee revoked the charter of the original institution in 1962. At the heart of Horton's philosophy and the Highlander program was a belief in the power of education to effect profound changes in society. By working with the knowledge the poor of Appalachia and the South had gained from their experiences, Horton and his staff expected to enable them to take control of their own lives and to solve their own problems. John M. Glen's authoritative study is more than the story of a singular school in Tennessee. It is a biography of Myles Horton, co-founder and long-time educational director of the school, whose social theories shaped its character. It is an analysis of the application of a particular idea of adult education to the problems of the South and of Appalachia. And it affords valuable insights into the history of the southern labor and the civil rights movements and of the individuals and institutions involved in them over the past five decades.

Education in Black and White

Education in Black and White
Author: Stephen Preskill
Publisher: University of California Press
Total Pages: 383
Release: 2021-05-11
Genre: History
ISBN: 0520302052

How Myles Horton and the Highlander Folk School catalyzed social justice and democratic education For too long, the story of life-changing teacher and activist Myles Horton has escaped the public spotlight. An inspiring and humble leader whose work influenced the civil rights movement, Horton helped thousands of marginalized people gain greater control over their lives. Born and raised in early twentieth-century Tennessee, Horton was appalled by the disrespect and discrimination that was heaped on poor people—both black and white—throughout Appalachia. He resolved to create a place that would be available to all, where regular people could talk, learn from one another, and get to the heart of issues of class and race, and right and wrong. And so in 1932, Horton cofounded the Highlander Folk School, smack in the middle of Tennessee. The first biography of Myles Horton in twenty-five years, Education in Black and White focuses on the educational theories and strategies he first developed at Highlander to serve the interests of the poor, the marginalized, and the oppressed. His personal vision keenly influenced everyone from Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr., to Eleanor Roosevelt and Congressman John Lewis. Stephen Preskill chronicles how Horton gained influence as an advocate for organized labor, an activist for civil rights, a supporter of Appalachian self-empowerment, an architect of an international popular-education network, and a champion for direct democracy, showing how the example Horton set remains education’s best hope for today.

Living in the Future

Living in the Future
Author: Victoria W. Wolcott
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 273
Release: 2022-04-21
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 022681727X

Living in the Future reveals the unexplored impact of utopian thought on the major figures of the Civil Rights Movement. Utopian thinking is often dismissed as unrealistic, overly idealized, and flat-out impractical—in short, wholly divorced from the urgent conditions of daily life. This is perhaps especially true when the utopian ideal in question is reforming and repairing the United States’ bitter history of racial injustice. But as Victoria W. Wolcott provocatively argues, utopianism is actually the foundation of a rich and visionary worldview, one that specifically inspired the major figures of the Civil Rights Movement in ways that haven’t yet been fully understood or appreciated. Wolcott makes clear that the idealism and pragmatism of the Civil Rights Movement were grounded in nothing less than an intensely utopian yearning. Key figures of the time, from Martin Luther King Jr. and Pauli Murray to Father Divine and Howard Thurman, all shared a belief in a radical pacificism that was both specifically utopian and deeply engaged in changing the current conditions of the existing world. Living in the Future recasts the various strains of mid-twentieth-century civil rights activism in a utopian light, revealing the power of dreaming in a profound and concrete fashion, one that can be emulated in other times that are desperate for change, like today.

Beautiful Corn

Beautiful Corn
Author: Anthony Boutard
Publisher: New Society Publishers
Total Pages: 234
Release: 2012-09-25
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0865717281

FROM SEED TO PLATE - THE SEASONS OF A REMARKABLE CROP "Part love song to an ancient grain, part elevated instruction on how to grow, cook and consume it, part history and animated story, Beautiful Corn opens our eyes to a food plant that humans have both cultivated and been cultivated by." ---Michael Ableman, farmer, author of "From The Good Earth, On Good Land, and Fields Of Plenty" Corn is the grain of the Americas. In terms of culinary uses, it is amazingly diverse, reflecting the breathtaking variety of the continents and environments from which it evolved. The consummate immigrant, corn is grown extensively on every continent except Antarctica. Much more than a simple how-to book, "Beautiful Corn" weaves together this unique plant's contribution to our culture, its distinctive biology and the practical information needed to grow and enjoy it at home. Market farmer and naturalist Anthony Boutard advocates a return to this traditional, nourishing and beautiful whole grain, in all of its rich diversity. Come along on this lyrical and inspiring journey through the seasons, and discover the pure joy of restoring heritage corn varieties to our tables. An unabashed celebration of a much-maligned culinary treasure, Beautiful Corn will forever change the way you view this remarkable plant. "Anthony Boutard tells a story of corn we haven't heard--not as fuel, or livestock feed, or food product--but as whole food, with the flavor and diversity that comes with thoughtful farming. Part history, part how-to manual (Boutard grows, grinds and cooks corn in all its variations), "Beautiful Corn" returns the culture, and the cuisine, to our most abundant and mistreated crop."---Dan Barber, Chef / Co-Owner, Blue Hill and Blue Hill at Stone Barns "In this lyrical love letter to an ancient, fascinating food, Anthony Boutard offers us a rich harvest of history, a primer on growing the best varieties, the close observations of a brilliant, insatiably curious farmer, and some tasty recipes to boot."--Lorna Sass, author of the James Beard Award winning "Whole Grains Every Day, Every Way" Anthony Boutard is a widely recognized advocate in the local food movement, well-known for his efforts in reviving long-lost crops and bringing little-known varieties to market. He and his wife Carol own Ayers Creek Farm, a 144-acre organic market farm in Gaston, Oregon specializing in berries, beans, grains and greens for sale to local restaurants and markets.

Why Community Matters

Why Community Matters
Author: Nicholas V. Longo
Publisher: State University of New York Press
Total Pages: 194
Release: 2012-02-01
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0791479609

Providing a new perspective on the undeniable relationship between education reform and democratic revitalization, Nicholas V. Longo uncovers and examines practical models in which communities play an essential role in teaching the art of democracy.

Transnational Roots of the Civil Rights Movement

Transnational Roots of the Civil Rights Movement
Author: Sean Chabot
Publisher: Lexington Books
Total Pages: 221
Release: 2012
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0739145770

How did African Americans gain the ability to apply Gandhian nonviolence during the civil rights movement? Responses generally focus on Martin Luther King's "pilgrimage to nonviolence" or favorable social contexts and processes. This book, in contrast, highlights the role of collective learning in the Gandhian repertoire's transnational diffusion. Collective learning shaped the invention of the Gandhian repertoire in South Africa and India as well as its transnational diffusion to the United States. In the 1920s, African Americans and their allies responded to Gandhi's ideas and practices by reproducing stereotypes. Meaningful collective learning started with translation of the Gandhian repertoire in the 1930s and small-scale experimentation in the early 1940s. After surviving the doldrums of the McCarthy era, full implementation of the Gandhian repertoire finally occurred during the civil rights movement between 1955 and 1965. This book goes beyond existing scholarship by contributing deeper and finer insights on how transnational diffusion between social movements actually works. It highlights the contemporary relevance of Gandhian nonviolence and its successful journey across borders.