Troublemakers: Chicago Freedom Struggles through the Lens of Art Shay

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Synopsis
“Shay’s stunning photos and Gellman’s historical narrative pack a one-two punch . . . an exhilarating lens through which to view one city’s struggle for justice.” —Alex Kotlowitz, author of An American SummerWhat does democracy look like? And when should we cause trouble to pursue it? Troublemakers fuses photography and history to demonstrate how racial and economic inequality gave rise to a decades-long struggle for justice in one American city.In dialogue with 275 of Art Shay’s photographs—many not previously published—Erik S. Gellman takes a new look at major developments in postwar US history: the Second Great Migration, “white flight,” and neighborhood and street conflicts, as well as shifting party politics and the growth of the carceral state. The result is a visual and written history that complicates—and even upends—the morality tales and popular memory of postwar freedom struggles.Shay himself was a “troublemaker,” seeking to unsettle society by illuminating truths that many middle-class, white, media, political, and businesspeople pretended did not exist. Shay served as a navigator in the US Army Air Forces during World War II, then took a position as a writer for Life magazine. But soon after his 1948 move to Chicago, he decided to become a freelance photographer. Shay wandered the city photographing whatever caught his eye—and much did. His lens captured everything from private moments of rebellion to era-defining public movements, as he sought to understand the creative and destructive energies that propelled freedom struggles in the Windy City.Shay illuminated the pain and ecstasy that sprung up from the streets of Chicago, while Gellman reveals their collective impact on the urban fabric and on our national narrative. This collaboration offers a fresh and timely look at how social conflict can shape a city—and may even inspire us to make trouble today.“Fascinating.” —Chicago Tribune
Copyright:
2019

Book Details

Book Quality:
Publisher Quality
Book Size:
258 Pages
ISBN-13:
9780226604084
Related ISBNs:
9780226603926
Publisher:
The University of Chicago Press
Date of Addition:
Copyrighted By:
The University of Chicago Press
Adult content:
No
Language:
English
Has Image Descriptions:
No
Categories:
History, Nonfiction, Art and Architecture, Communication
Submitted By:
Bookshare Staff
Usage Restrictions:
This is a copyrighted book.

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