Books: Non-Fiction

Pauli Murray: The Life of a Pioneering Feminist and Civil Rights Activist

Book — Non-fiction. By Terry Catasús Jennings and Rosita Stevens-Holsey, illustrated by Ashanti Fortson. 2022. 288 pages.
A biography of Pauli Murray, a queer civil rights and women’s rights activist who fought in the trenches for many of the rights we now take for granted.

Time Periods: 20th Century, 1945
Themes: African American, Laws & Citizen Rights, Women's History

Pauli Murray was a thorn in the side of white America demanding justice and equal treatment for all. She was a queer civil rights and women’s rights activist before any movement advocated for either — the brilliant mind that, in 1944, conceptualized the arguments that would win Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka; and in 1964, the arguments that won women equality in the workplace.

Throughout her life, she fought for the oppressed, not only through changing laws, but by using her powerful prose to influence those who could affect change. She lived by her convictions and challenged authority to demand fairness and justice regardless of the personal consequences. Without seeking acknowledgment, glory, or financial gain for what she did, Pauli Murray fought in the trenches for many of the rights we take for granted. Her goal was human rights and the dignity of life for all. [Adapted from publisher’s description.]

ISBN: 9781499812510 | Yellow Jacket

Pauli Murray was brilliant, outspoken, and committed to achieving dignity and equality for all under the law. Rising from poverty, Murray challenged pervasive race and sex discrimination and helped launch the two most important movements of the Twentieth Century: civil rights and women’s rights. This new biography capsulizes important events and accomplishments of an iconoclast who would not take ‘No’ for an answer. Young readers will be drawn to the story of Pauli’s bravery and pivotal role in history.  —Christian F. Nunes, President, National Organization for Women

This inspiring biography in verse aims to promote the life and work of the lesser-known yet influential Black civil rights activist and feminist. —Booklist Reviews

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