Bøger af Matt Holland

Before Civil Rights heroes like Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King made their courageous stands, before the creation of the iconic images that represent the struggle against racism in the United States - before there even was a Civil Rights Movement - there was the story of the Omaha DePorres Club. The DePorres Club's pioneering efforts not only challenged racial discrimination and segregation, but aimed to convince people that the two were morally wrong - sins that demanded attention. Led by Fr. John Markoe - a Jesuit priest who was a 1914 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and was called a "champion of interracial justice and human rights" by Whitney Young - the Omaha DePorres Club worked to change the pattern of discrimination and segregation in a city known by African-Americans as "the Birmingham of the North." Author Matt Holland recounts the events that led to the creation of the Omaha DePorres Club and traces the arc of the club's evolution from 1947 to 1960 - revealing the courage and camaraderie of club members as well as the challenges, fears and failures they faced as they ventured into the uncharted territory of the early Civil Rights Movement.

A 1914 graduate of West Point, John Markoe was a gridiron hero who played against the likes of Jim Thorpe. He was a dashing, highly regarded cavalry officer - Dwight Eisenhower called him the best potential officer he'd ever seen - whose brief military career ended in shame and scandal. He was a Jesuit priest for fifty years and an alcoholic for fifty-seven. And for five decades he was a pioneering battler for racial equality, combining Jesuit spirituality with his military training as he worked in cities like St. Louis and Omaha to improve opportunities for African-Americans while striving to convince white Americans that racism was a sin. A much-needed story of persistence and faith, this book is a marvel of diligent historical recovery. What Holland accomplishes in this book is to give us multiple portraits of one of the most complex (and complicated) Catholic priests to live and work and bear witness to the cause of social/racial justice in this country. ...the true story of a true son of Ignatius, a soldier, scholar, advocate for justice, a man who never let his own weaknesses dissuade him from answering the call to transform the places where he journeyed. It gives us hope. from the foreword by Joseph A. Brown, S.J.; Ph.D.Professor; Director; School of Africana and Multicultural StudiesSouthern Illinois University Carbondale

A funny, light-hearted children's story to help readers understand the importance of not spreading germs.