Refusing Racism

Why and how have whites joined people of color to fight against white supremacy in the United States? What have they risked and what have they gained? For anyone who has wondered about the character, motivations, and contributions of white civil rights activists, "Refusing Racism" offers rich portraits of four contemporary white American activists who have dedicated their lives to the struggle for civil rights.

Meet the White Allies!
Virginia Foster Durr (1903-1999) was a housewife and political activist from Birmingham, Alabama, who fought against the poll tax and southern white male domination.
J. Waties Waring (1880-1968) was a federal judge from Charleston, South Carolina, who opened white primaries to black voters.
Anne McCarty Braden (born 1924) is a journalist and community organizer from Louisville, Kentucky, who defied racist real estate practices and the House Un-American Activities Committee and organized white southerners to support the civil rights movement.
Herbert R. Kohl (born 1937) is a writer and educator from New York City who authored 36 Children and twenty-five other books about education and civil rights.
Cynthia Stokes Brown is Professor of Education Emerita at Dominican University of California, and is the author of many books and articles on education and history.