Charles Sumner

Conscience of a Nation

De: Zaakir Tameez

Narrado por: David Lee Garver

Charles Sumner is mainly known as the abolitionist statesman who suffered a brutal caning on the Senate floor by the proslavery congressman Preston Brooks in 1856. This violent episode has obscured Sumner's status as the most passionate champion of equal rights and multiracial democracy of his time. A friend of Alexis de Tocqueville, an ally of Frederick Douglass, and an adviser to Abraham Lincoln, Sumner helped the Union win the Civil War and ordain the Emancipation Proclamation, the Thirteenth Amendment, the Freedmen's Bureau, and the Civil Rights Act of 1875.

In a comprehensive narrative, Zaakir Tameez presents Sumner as one of America's forgotten founding fathers, a constitutional visionary who helped to rewrite the post–Civil War Constitution and give birth to modern civil rights law. He argues that Sumner was a gay man who battled with love and heartbreak at a time when homosexuality wasn't well understood or accepted. And he explores Sumner's critical partnerships with the nation's first generation of Black lawyers and civil rights leaders.

An extraordinary achievement of historical and constitutional scholarship, Charles Sumner brings back to life one of America's most inspiring statesmen, whose formidable ideas remain relevant to a nation still divided over questions of race, democracy, and constitutional law.

©2025 Zaakir Tameez (P)2025 Tantor Media

Terrific story. Well-researched and well-told.

Excellent way to learn more about pre- and post-civil war history. Sumner was a critical actor at a hugely important moment in US history

Very complete and educational

Charles Sumner, Conscience of a Nation

By Zaakir Tameez

Many of us know the story of Senator Charles Sumner being beaten nearly to death by an enraged Confederate Congressman, Preston Brooks, with a cane while trapped at his desk. Some may even know that it would be Brooks who died not long after of natural causes.
I had always wanted to know more about Sumner, an avowed abolitionist. Mr. Tameez certainly delivered on that quarter, telling a complete story of Sumner’s upbringing and unusual rise to prominence in the Senate. You will find what appears to be a frank and thoughtful account of Sumner’s steadfast civil rights efforts and his personal foibles. He was apparently prone to emotional outbursts.
In closing the book, Mr. Tameez brings his impartiality into question as he editorializes about civil rights long after Sumner’s passing, claiming that America is still segregated in 2025. Of course, such a statement makes one wonder about the accuracy of the rest of the book. Mr. Tameez used “historians” as references without naming them more than once, leaving the reader to wonder why.
Still, the book is enlightening in its descriptions of political life in the latter 19th century, including shifting loyalties and legislative maneuvering which would make modern politicians blush. I enjoyed the book.

Lost History Revealed

Excellent telling of the details of the life of an under appreciated American patriot! A must read for anyone who wants a comprehensive look at a critical time in American history that helps explain our 21st Century world.

An Eye Opening Piece of History

This book brings to life a man who only gets a blurb in the history books. The biography is organized in a way that shows you the human and complex side of our nation’s history. Everyone should read this book.

Sumner Would Be Proud

I’m in awe imagining the amount of research and by the thoughtfulness that went into crafting this thorough and insightful biography. It gives Sumner his due respect, humanizes him as a person, and yet doesn’t shy from including his flaws in telling his life story. So glad this original Civil Rights Hero is so ably honored by Mr. Tameez.

A True American Hero

This book was an outstanding overview of a complex and accomplished life of a person that dedicated his life to abolishing slavery and establishing human and civil rights for African Americans. Senator Sumner was a true American hero that never let go of his moral convictions to improve the lives of those most abused and vulnerable in American society. Great book. Important and inspiring story of dedication, resilience and commitment.