States Rights

Author Thomas Healy resurrects a forgotten saga of race, capitalism, and the struggle for equality in this fascinating, forgotten story of the 1970s attempt to build a city dedicated to racial equality in the heart of “Klan Country”.

Through vivid histories drawn from virtually every continent, A World Divided describes how, since the 18th century, nationalists have struggled to establish their own states that grant human rights to some people. At the same time, they have excluded others through forced assimilation, ethnic cleansing, or even genocide. From Greek rebels, American settlers, and Brazilian abolitionists in the 19th century to anticolonial Africans and Zionists in the 20th, nationalists have confronted a crucial question: Who has the "right to have rights?"

The forgotten story of a criminal trial that brought national attention to a young defendant named Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. as told by Fred D. Gray, Dr. King’s lawyer and friend, along with New York Times bestselling authors Dan Abrams and David Fisher. The audiobook concludes with an exclusive conversation between Fred Gray and Dan Abrams.

After years of soul searching, both author Renee’ Drummond-Brown (USA), and Nancy Ndeke (Kenya, Nairobi), connect to their lost lineage to identify with their culture’s complex roots, historical backgrounds, and finally come to terms with confronting their own fears of forgiveness. Because slavery was anything but a figment of imagination, both author Drummond-Brown and Ndeke use their literary voice poetically from across the globe to face those fears. Stepping out on faith by accepting the things they cannot change and having the wisdom to know the difference, the authors welcome the ...

The federal government was established to be a complement to the governments of the fifty states, then thirteen. It was tasked with providing for the common defense, administering the states' combined relationships with foreign nations and powers, and to assist in resolving disputes that would arise between the sovereign states. Today, in its current state, the United States federal government has exploded into an all-power central government; a form of government our Founders and Framers never sought for our Republic and, in fact, one they fought a war against for our independence. ...

By March 4, 1865, the Civil War had slaughtered more than 700,000 Americans. After a morning of rain-drenched fury, tens of thousands crowded Washington’s Capitol grounds that day to see Abraham Lincoln take the oath for a second term. As the sun emerged, Lincoln rose to give perhaps the greatest inaugural address in American history, stunning the nation by arguing, in a brief 701 words, that both sides had been wrong, and that the war’s unimaginable horrors - every drop of blood spilled - might well have been God’s just verdict on the national sin of slavery.

Can you describe America’s founding principles? Thomas Jefferson said America’s founding principles “should be the creed of our political faith, the text of civic instruction, the touchstone by which to try the service of those we trust.” He added, “should we wander from them in moments of error or of alarm, let us hasten to retrace our steps and to regain the road which alone leads to peace, liberty, and safety.” Can you name America’s most influential founders? For many, the first people that come to mind are George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and John Adams. To be sure, ...

Distinguished historian Peniel E. Joseph offers a powerful and personal new interpretation of recent history. The racial reckoning that unfolded in 2020, he argues, marked the climax of a Third Reconstruction: a new struggle for citizenship and dignity for Black Americans, just as momentous as the movements that arose after the Civil War and during the civil rights era. Joseph draws revealing connections and insights across centuries as he traces this Third Reconstruction from the election of Barack Obama to the rise of Black Lives Matter to the failed assault on the Capitol.

In 1974, Judge George Boldt issued a ruling that affirmed the fishing rights and tribal sovereignty of Native nations in Washington State. The Boldt Decision transformed Indigenous law and resource management across the United States and beyond. The case also brought about far-reaching societal changes, reinforcing tribal sovereignty and remedying decades of injustice. Eminent legal historian and tribal advocate Charles Wilkinson tells the story of the Boldt Decision against the backdrop of salmon's central place in the cultures and economies of the Pacific Northwest.

George Mason was a short, bookish man who was a friend and neighbor of athletic, broad-shouldered George Washington. Unlike Washington, Mason has been virtually forgotten by history. But this new biography of patriot George Mason makes a convincing case that Mason belongs in the pantheon of honored Founding Fathers. Trained in the law, Mason was also a farmer, philosopher, botanist, and musician. He was one of the architects of the Declaration of Independence, an author of the Bill of Rights, and one of the strogest proponents of religious liberty in American history.

Can you describe America’s founding principles? Thomas Jefferson said America’s founding principles “should be the creed of our political faith, the text of civic instruction, the touchstone by which to try the service of those we trust.” He added, “should we wander from them in moments of error or of alarm, let us hasten to retrace our steps and to regain the road which alone leads to peace, liberty, and safety.” Can you name America’s most influential founders? For many, the first people that come to mind are George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and John Adams. To be sure, ...

"Our grandfathers had to run, run, run. My generation's out of breath. We ain't running no more.” (Stokely Carmichael). In the town of Greenwood, central Mississippi, on the evening of June 16, 1966, one of the most influential speeches in modern American history was delivered on the grounds of Stone Street Negro Elementary School. Earlier in the day, as a body of marchers tried to set up camp on the grounds of the school, they were approached by local officials and law enforcement with instructions to move on.

The story of history is a ceaseless conversation between past and present, and in American Dialogue, Joseph J. Ellis focuses the conversation on the often-asked question "What would the Founding Fathers think?" He examines four of our most seminal historical figures through the prism of particular topics, using the perspective of the present to shed light on their views and, in turn, to make clear how their now centuries-old ideas illuminate the disturbing impasse of today's political conflicts.

In Radical Reparations, this conversation shifter, social justice pioneer, change agent, and inventor of the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter, which redefined the global conversation on racism and social justice, offers a unifying and unconventional framework for achieving holistic and comprehensive healing of African American communities.

Almost two centuries ago, the Southern states declared their independence and broke away from the federal government. In doing so, they created the Confederacy. Now, the Confederate States of America continue to thrive. Wealthy, white landowners enjoy a total monopoly on power. The CSA is an agricultural powerhouse. Proud and seemingly unstoppable, this nation and her people see themselves as a shining beacon of prosperity, especially when property rights and the natural order are respected. Stan McLeod may not be one of the wealthiest landowners, but he is a banker and fairly well-off. He ...

In gripping, novelistic detail, Saying It Loud tells the story of how the Black Power phenomenon began to challenge the traditional civil rights movement in the turbulent year of 1966. Saying It Loud takes you inside the dramatic events in this seminal year, from Stokely Carmichael’s middle-of-the-night ouster of moderate icon John Lewis as chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) to Carmichael’s impassioned cry of “Black Power!” during a protest march in rural Mississippi.

The top-secret world that the government created in response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks has become so enormous, so unwieldy, and so secretive that no one knows how much money it costs, how many people it employs or exactly how many agencies duplicate work being done elsewhere. Award-winning reporters Dana Priest and William Arkin here uncover the enormous size, shape, mission, and consequences of this invisible universe.

First published in 1961, John Hope Franklin’s revelatory study of the Reconstruction Era is a landmark work of history, exploring the role of former slaves and dispelling longstanding popular myths about corruption and Radical rule. Looking past dubious scholarship that had previously dominated the narrative, Franklin combines astute insight and careful research to provide an accurate, comprehensive portrait of the era.

While the United States Constitution is the supreme law of the land, it is also a source of great controversy. It establishes the fundamental framework of our system of government, while differences in how to understand and interpret it often divide people. The United States Constitution: A History takes a fresh look at the Constitution, its origins, and controversies, from the founding of the country and its creation at the Constitutional Convention to the present. It examines the various controversies that divided the convention.

For more than half a century, the United States has been pursuing a grand imperial strategy with the aim of staking out the globe. Our leaders have shown themselves willing, as in the Cuban missile crisis, to follow the dream of dominance no matter how high the risks. Now the Bush administration is intensifying this process, driving us toward the final frontiers of imperial control, toward a choice between the prerogatives of power and a livable Earth.