Courage in The People's House
Nine Trailblazing Representatives Who Shaped America
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
Featuring the remarkable stories of nine US Representatives who helped shape America, Courage in The People’s House is a “reminder of how courage can make a difference, and how, especially in the darkest of times, the lessons of history are most needed” (Booklist).
In this “well-written addition to the history of Congress” (Kirkus Reviews), Courage in The People’s House tells the “accessible and well-researched” (Booklist) stories of nine individuals who served in the US House of Representatives—the “People’s House”—during a span of over one hundred years, from the 1870s to the 1990s. From the first African American to serve in the House to immigrants elected at the dawn of the 20th century, all were trailblazers who made significant contributions to the country. The book provides an inspiring story of America through profiles of each of them, representatives of all political stripes who overcame the odds and demonstrated the courage to challenge powerful interests, and at times, their own political allies. The nine members of Congress are:
-Joseph Rainey, South Carolina
-Josiah Walls, Florida
-William B. Wilson, Pennsylvania
-Adolph Sabath, Illinois
-Oscar Stanton De Priest, Illinois
-Margaret Chase Smith, Maine
-Henry B. Gonzalez, Texas
-Shirley Chisholm, New York
-Barbara Jordan, Texas
In this “brisk and spirited debut” (Publishers Weekly), Representative Joe Neguse, the first African American elected to Congress from Colorado, shares how these nine ordinary Americans served nobly despite the barriers before them and did extraordinary things in service to their constituents, the Constitution, and the country.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Colorado congressman Neguse profiles nine of his predecessors in the House of Representatives in his brisk and spirited debut. Six of the nine are politicians of color, including Joseph Rainey (1832–1887) of South Carolina, who was instrumental in enacting the 1875 Civil Rights Bill, though some of his fellow Republicans criticized him for ensuring its passage by linking it to amnesty for former Confederates. Rainey lost the vote of another subject of Neguse's research, Florida's Josiah Walls (1842–1905), who abstained because language had been eliminated from the bill that would have desegregated schools. Neguse also spotlights Pennsylvania's William B. Wilson (1862–1934), a former miner who battled to protect coal miners in the early 20th century, and Maine's Margaret Chase Smith (1897–1995), who advocated for equal treatment of women in the military. Elsewhere, the author delves into Shirley Chisholm's controversial 1972 decision to visit her congressional colleague, staunch segregationist George Wallace, in the hospital after he survived an assassination attempt. Neguse optimistically concludes that the potential for political courage in the House remains robust in 2023. His judicious selection of subjects will give some readers hope.
