A Song for the Unsung: Bayard Rustin, the Man Behind the 1963 March on Washington
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
Winner of the Jane Addams Children's Book Award
A singular, richly illustrated picture book biography of Bayard Rustin, the gay Black man behind the March on Washington of 1963, by the acclaimed authors of Unspeakable: the Tulsa Race Massacre and Pride: The Story of Harvey Milk and the Rainbow Flag.
On August 28, 1963, a quarter of a million activists and demonstrators from every corner of the United States convened for the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. It was there and then that they raised their voices in unison to call for racial and economic justice for all Black Americans, to call out inequities, and ultimately to advance the Civil Rights Movement.
Every movement has its unsung heroes: individuals who work in the background without praise or accolades, who toil and struggle without notice. One of those unsung heroes was at the center of some of the most important decisions and events of the Civil Rights Movement.
That hero was a quiet man, a gay African American man. He was Bayard Rustin.
Carole Boston Weatherford and Rob Sanders's A Song for the Unsung, featuring illustrations from artist Byron McCray, is an inspiring story that answers one of our nation’s greatest calls to action by honoring one of the men who made it happen.
"A splendid tribute to a true hero of the civil rights movement." –Booklist, starred review
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Boston Weatherford and Sanders detail the often unsung contributions of Bayard Rustin (1912–1987) to the civil rights movement in this picture book biography, which alternates his life story with pivotal scenes leading up to the 1963 March on Washington. Raised by his Black Quaker grandmother, Rustin witnesses her activism at an early age, including her offer of hospitality ("Young Bayard gave up his bed when well-known NAACP members stayed overnight"); by college, "Bayard had developed firm beliefs and a mighty singing voice," and begins fighting for equality through nonviolence. Subsequent spreads acknowledge Rustin as the organizer of the March on Washington, detail the prejudice he experienced as both a Black man and a gay man, and intersperse song titles linked to his actions ("Sing ‘Every Time I Feel the Spirit' to keep the faith"). McCray's mixed-media illustrations include decorative papers and printed ephemera, giving the story visual depth that aligns with the layered telling. Extensive back matter concludes. Ages 6–10.
