Blood and Fire

In the summer of 1919, the streets of America ran red.

From the ashes of World War I, Black veterans returned home proud, emboldened, and determined to claim the rights they'd fought for abroad. But the nation they returned to bristled with fear. As African Americans migrated northward, asserted political agency, and defended themselves against racial violence, white America responded with coordinated terror, lynchings, and riots.

Blood and Fire: The Spark That Lit Red Summer captures the combustible mix of racial tension, economic anxiety, and political paranoia that exploded into one of the most violent and transformative periods in American history. James G. Edwards II takes readers deep into the causes and consequences of Red Summer, spotlighting the courage of Black communities who chose resistance over retreat.

This is not just the story of a violent season—it's the untold beginning of a revolution.