Before Jackie: The Negro Leagues, Civil Rights and the American Dream

A Social, Economic and Political History of the Negro Leagues Era for Teachers of Social Studies and American History

Between the end of Reconstruction in the 1880s and the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, the players, managers and owners of the Negro Leagues empowered and inspired the African-American community to resist Jim Crow. Through the lens of baseball, Before Jackie presents this less familiar history of the era's rich tradition of activism to engage students with stories of African Americans' creativity and courage. These stories will especially appeal to African-American students who too often feel that U.S. social studies and American history has little to do with them.

Annotated and illustrated throughout, it includes lesson plans that allow students to draw on a wide variety of resources and gives teachers valuable assistance in making social studies accessible, relevant and even fun for teaching at all grade levels.