Not free, not for all : public libraries in the age of Jim Crow Cover Image

Book

Not free, not for all : public libraries in the age of Jim Crow / Cheryl Knott.

Knott, Cheryl, 1954- (author.).

Summary:

Americans tend to imagine their public libraries as time-honored advocates of equitable access to information for all. Through much of the twentieth century, however, many Black Americans were denied access to public libraries or allowed admittance only to separate and smaller buildings and collections. While scholars have examined and continue to uncover the history of school segregation, there has been much less research published on the segregation of public libraries in the Jim Crow South. In fact, much of the writing on public library history has failed to note these racial exclusions. In Not Free, Not for All, Cheryl Knott traces the establishment, growth, and eventual demise of separate public libraries for African Americans in the South, disrupting the popular image of the American public library as historically welcoming readers from all walks of life.

Record details

ISBN: 9781625341785
ISBN: 1625341784
ISBN: 9781625341778
ISBN: 1625341776
Physical Description: x, 312 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm.
Publisher: Amherst : University of Massachusetts Press, [2015]

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:	Includes bibliographical references (pages 267-304) and index.
Formatted Contents Note:	The culture of print in a context of racism -- Carnegie public libraries for African Americans -- Solidifying segregation -- Faltering systems -- Change and continuity -- Erecting libraries, constructing race -- Books for Black readers -- Reading the race-based library -- Opening access.