Cultural Literature

The black experience in America--starting from its origins in western Africa up to 1961--is examined in this seminal study from a prominent African American figure. The entire historical timeline of African Americans is addressed, from the Colonial...

1963. It is a year stamped as one of the most turbulent during the Civil Rights movement. Centuries of racial oppression were confronted with peaceful protests challenging segregation laws. Responses to protests were often met with brutality. Four young...

The work of dismantling racism doesn't happen overnight. Been in the Struggle nurtures, challenges, and fosters the work and witness of dismantling racism for the long haul. Filled with wisdom and insight from nearly three decades of partnering across...

The work of dismantling racism doesn't happen overnight. Been in the Struggle nurtures, challenges, and fosters the work and witness of dismantling racism for the long haul. Filled with wisdom and insight from nearly three decades of partnering across...

The first decades of the 21st century saw dramatic changes in the music industry as technology transformed creation, communication, and consumption. Amid this turmoil one change occurred relatively quietly, almost naturally: so-called bedroom producers,...

Best-selling author and beloved chronicler of Los Angeles D.J. Waldie reconsiders the city in a collection of contemporary essays.Nobody sees Los Angeles with more eloquence than D. J. Waldie. - Susan Brenneman, Los Angeles Times Deputy Op-Ed...

History's only four-time world heavyweight boxing champion and one of America's most admired and beloved athletes reveals the dramatic story of his rise from poverty to the very pinnacle of the toughest sport on earth. Barely able to make it into the...

An intimate, powerful, and inspiring memoir by the former First Lady of the United States #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - WATCH THE EMMY-NOMINATED NETFLIX ORIGINAL DOCUMENTARY - OPRAH'S BOOK CLUB PICK - NAACP IMAGE AWARD WINNER - ONE OF ESSENCE'S 50 MOST...

I saw a car in a driveway and I ducked under the car lying there, afraid to move. It was still in the middle of the day, about five or six o'clock. Every time someone would walk past, or I heard something my heart would start beating so fast because, I...

On the heels of swing, bebop lifted jazz from the dance floor into an art form powered by virtuoso players. This engaging collection of essays, biographies and reviews by veteran jazz journalist Scott Yanow probes the lives and revolutionary works of...

Devin had his whole life figured out-high school, college, and then the NFL. Who knew one accident would set a world of chaos in motion? Karma has a way of creeping up on you. Who's with you when it seems everyone is against? Do you retreat or boss up...

Our generation made hip-hop. But hip-hop also made us. Why are suburban kids referring to their subdivision as "block"? Why has the pimp become a figure of male power? Why has dodging the feds become an act of honor long after one has made millions as a...