Civil Rights Movements: Past & Present, 2nd Edition

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A CHOICE Top 75 Community College Resource for January 2022

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This new, two-volume set explores the ways in which civil rights have been given, cemented, overturned, or left unrecognized, from the first uprisings to present-day 2020. In 2014, as the nation celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of the March on Washington, civil rights groups such as Black Lives Matter were organizing. Though our societal rhetoric has shifted, the struggle remains the same.

In 362 alphabetically arranged essays, ranging in length from 200 to 2,700 words, Civil Rights Movements: Past & Present examines a wide range of civil rights issues in all their manifestations. This edition not only provides 64 new articles but also includes hundreds of updates to older articles that include new biographical resources. Not just focusing on the history of African American civil rights in the United States, this new edition has been expanded to include other civil rights movements—the women’s movement, the LGBT movement, the Chicano Movement, the American Indian Movement, and the disability rights movement—while still maintaining a comprehensive overview of African American civil rights. The entries are arranged alphabetically and run from “Abolition” to “Zoning.”

The essays in Civil Rights Movements: Past & Present cover a wide variety of material. While some essays focus on individual organizations, movements, or people, other cover court cases or pieces of official legislation. Still, others cover broader, more conceptual topics. Most entries include the following sections:

• A short Introduction providing the reader with a one- or two-sentence overview of the topic
• A comprehensive Body explaining the history of the subject, its cultural significance, and, in many cases, its implications for the future of civil rights
• A bibliographical list of Further Reading that serves as a guide to further reading for the curious user
• And a See Also section which points the reader to other essays in the set that may be relevant to the topic at hand

Among issues discussed in this new edition:

• Arizona HB 2281 Limits Ethnic Studies
• Flint Water Crisis
• North Carolina Begins Compensating Victims of Eugenics
• Unrest in Baltimore
• Black Lives Matter
• 2018 Voter Suppression
• Million Hoodies Movement
• Protests of Confederate Monuments 
• Mass Incarceration
• Infrastructure and Inequality

Back matter in Volume 2 contains a number of reference tools to help readers further explore civil rights history. An updated Bibliography, organized by category, directs readers to accessible sources for further study. An updated glossary of Notable Civil Rights Figures offers overviews of the life and achievements of 64 key historical actors involved in all aspects of American civil rights. A Timeline provides a snapshot of significant civil rights events covering four centuries, from 1619 to 2019. Lastly, a Subject Index provides access to the individual essays and their content through multiple access points.

This two-volume work contains more than 350 in-depth essays that analyze the events that have shaped American attitudes from the start of the civil rights movement into the new millennium, communicating important concepts in a clear, approachable style, with more than 100 photographs. This is an essential text for any scholar interested in the evolution of activism. 

These volumes are designed to provide high school and community college students, undergraduates, and the general public with an up-to-date overview of civil rights issues in the United States. These informative essays provide the necessary historical background to foster a better, more in-depth understanding of the events and figures that are shaping today’s conversations on civil rights.