When White is Black Reviews

Looking back on his family's history, John Martin visits a fascinating cast of characters, some of whom he knew and loved, some of whom he heard about and admired, all of whom, whatever their lineage or skin tone, fought to survive in a nation where the One-drop Rule of racism relegated African Americans to what U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Taney described in 1857 as a "subordinate and inferior class of beings."

Martin has written a memoir that matters.

Very moving because of its painful honesty. He records the corrosive effects of racism and discrimination on real people in American society. He is courageous in revealing his own emotional responses to that racism and to the disruptions in his own life that it has caused. When White is Black represents the culmination of a long and important career during which (Martin) shaped the program of Stiles Hall at the University of California at Berkeley to educate generations of young men and women to be leaders in the fight against racism. His life is a true model of activism and this book should be an inspiration to young leaders as they pursue their goals of a just society.

    - Clara Sue Kidwell, Professor and Director of the Native American Studies Program at the University of Oklahoma

An extraordinary story -- a richly textured genealogy that is also a vehicle for searing social commentary about two centuries of race in America. John Martin displays an uncanny ability to combine passion and restraint -- and he provides us with unusual insight into the lived experience of navigating along the nation's most volatile faultline.

    - Troy Duster, author of Whitewashing Race: The Myth of a Colorblind Society; Director, Institute for the History of the Production of Knowledge, NY University; and Chancellor's Professor, University of California, Berkeley

A deeply moving story of a mixed-race family's struggle for survival and identity through several generations. The characters are impressive, charming, funny, flawed, sad, even tragic. They and the underlying theme of racism make this family story a compelling and truly American tale.

    - Michael O'Neill, Professor of Nonprofit Management and Founder of the Institute for Nonprofit Organization Management at the University of San Francisco

Purchase When White is Black from Amazon.com or River's Bend Press