Claire Hartfield, A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919
American Writer’s Museum, 800 N. Michigan
Avenue, Second Floor, at 6pm
On a hot day in July 1919, five black youths
went swimming in Lake Michigan, unintentionally floating close to the
"white" beach. An angry white man began throwing stones at the boys,
striking and killing one. The racial
conflict on the beach erupted into days of urban violence that shook the city
of Chicago to its foundations.
This mesmerizing narrative draws on
contemporary accounts as it traces the roots of the explosion that had been
building for decades.
Author Claire Hartfield received her B.A. from
Yale University and her law degree from the University of Chicago. As a lawyer,
she has specialized in school desegregation litigation. More recently, she has
been involved in setting policy and creating programs in charter schools on the
West Side. She heard stories of the 1919 race riot from her grandmother, who
lived in the Black Belt in Chicago at the time, and was moved to share this
history with younger generations. Ms. Hartfield lives in Chicago.
Reader’s Hall. General public.
We will be on hand to sell books before and
after the event.
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