A contextual historical examination of the civil rights movement and the artists who inspired it, this recollection depicts this storied era and how these artists signified the affecting change they helped create. The exploration details the development of the Black Arts Movement--from precursor activities such as the Umbra Workshop to transitional activities such as Ntozake Shange's choreopoem ""for colored girls who considered suicide when the rainbow is enuf""--and gives in-depth information about the role of prominent poets, such as Amiri Baraka, and the influence of black music.

In cities across the nation, communities of color find themselves resisting state disinvestment and the politics of dispossession. Students at the Center--a writing initiative based in several New Orleans high schools--takes on this struggle through a close examination of race and schools. This book builds on the powerful stories of marginalized youth and their teachers, who contest the policies that are destructive to their communities: decentralization, charter schools, market-based educational choice, teachers union-busting, mixed-income housing, and urban redevelopment. Striking commentaries from the foremost scholars of the day explore the wider implications of these stories for pedagogy and educational policy in schools across the United States and the globe. Most importantly, this book reveals what must be done to challenge oppressive conditions and democratize our schools by troubling the vision of city elites who seek to elide students' histories, privatize their schools, and reinvent their neighborhoods. Contributors include Michael W. Apple, Wayne Au, Adrienne D. Dixson, Maisha T. Fisher, Joyce E. King, Pauline Lipman, and Vanessa Siddle Walker.