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Black Women and the Making of Human Rights
by Keisha N. Blain
Even before they were recognized as citizens of the United States, Black women understood that the fights for civil and human rights were inseparable.
Over the course of two hundred years, they were at the forefront of national and international movements for social change, weaving connections between their own and others' freedom struggles around the world.
Without Fear tells how, during American history, Black women made humans rights theirs: from worldwide travel and public advocacy in the global Black press to their work for the United Nations, they courageously and effectively moved human rights beyond an esoteric concept to an active, organizing principle. Acclaimed historian Keisha N. Blain tells the story of these women―from the well-known, like Ida B. Wells, Madam C. J. Walker, and Lena Horne, to those who are still less known, including Pearl Sherrod, Aretha McKinley, and Marguerite Cartwright. Blain captures human rights thinking and activism from the ground up with Black women at the center, working outside the traditional halls of power.
By shouldering intersecting forms of oppression―including racism, sexism, and classism―Black women have long been in a unique position to fight for freedom and dignity. Without Fear is an account of their aspirations, strategies, and struggles to pioneer a human rights approach to combating systems of injustice.
"This well-written and deeply researched study of Black women's fight for human rights would be a welcome addition for readers interested in Black history and social justice." —Library Journal (starred review)
"A fresh look at the fight for human rights reveals the unsung leadership of Black women." —Kirkus Reviews
"Eye-opening…A thoroughly researched and invigorating look at a robust grassroots push for human rights in the 20th century." —Publishers Weekly
"In this meticulously detailed, distinctly illuminating, and invaluable history, Blain covers generations of trailblazing women." ―Booklist
"Keisha N. Blain has written a necessary and bracing history of Black women's critical role over the past two centuries in defining the concept of human rights. Moving beyond the focus on diplomats and famous philosophers, Without Fear highlights the words and actions of the most marginalized women in society, whose insistence on the natural, universal, and equal rights of all human beings have made them an inspiring example to the world." ―Annette Gordon-Reed, author of On Juneteenth
"In Without Fear, distinguished historian Keisha N. Blain takes us on epic journey through time as she shines a light on the too often overlooked generations of Black American women, who, from the ground up, advanced the cause of human rights at home and abroad. This is an important, and accessible work that helps to fill in a major void in our shared historical narrative. It's also an inspiring study of how Black women have continuously carried the torch of justice and made the cause of human rights their own for the uplift of all." ―Henry Louis Gates, Jr., author of The Black Box
This information about Without Fear was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Keisha N. Blain is professor of Africana studies and history at Brown University. She is a Guggenheim, Carnegie, and New America Fellow, and author―most recently of the National Book Critics Circle Award finalist Until I Am Free. She lives in Providence, Rhode Island.
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