Heritage Studies

Madam C. J. Walker was beloved within her community for her philanthropy and expanding the local black YMCA, but she couldn't have done that if she weren't the first female self-made millionaire and one of the most successful African American business owners ever. Born Sarah Breedlove, she was the first person born free in her family. She married Charles Joseph Walker and became known as Madam C. J. Walker, the name she would later use on her haircare products.

In Different, world-renowned primatologist Frans de Waal draws on decades of observation and studies of both human and animal behavior to argue that despite the linkage between gender and biological sex, biology does not automatically support the traditional gender roles in human societies. While humans and other primates do share some behavioral differences, biology offers no justification for existing gender inequalities.

BEYOND ELEGY: APPALACHIA'S TRUE STORY OF RESILIENCE AND HOPE By Laurel Ridgewater "Beyond Elegy" is a compelling non-fiction narrative that challenges stereotypes and presents a nuanced portrait of modern Appalachia. Through personal stories, rigorous research, and vibrant storytelling, the book explores how this diverse region is navigating the complexities of the 21st century while honoring its rich heritage. Moving beyond simplistic portrayals of poverty and rural decline, Beyond Elegy examines Appalachia’s: Cultural Diversity and Evolution A rich tapestry of traditions interwoven with...

Escape the ordinary and transform the world around you with "Reinventing Spaces," a trailblazing eBook that will redefine your understanding of architecture, history, and sustainability. Bring your imagination to the very edges of innovation as you embark on a comprehensive journey through the dynamic field of adaptive reuse—a movement proving that the past can be the foundation for a future charged with creativity and environmental consciousness. Venture into the philosophical core of adaptive reuse in the enthralling opening chapters, where you’ll explore the nuanced balance between ...

Reprint of the classic textbook: 10th Anniversary 2021 Edition. Chicago history/culture with an Italian flair! There is something for everybody in this eclectic volume. Every reader will find a topic or a writer that s/he wants to know more about. Publication of Reconstructing Italians in Chicago is a major step toward making Chicago's Italians the best documented (and best understood) in the nation. It is a gateway to both the academic and the personal exploration of Italians in Chicago, loaded with references that lead the reader to just about every source of information on the subject. ...

On June 25, 2013, the US Supreme Court handed down its decision in Shelby County v. Holder, invalidating a key provision of voting rights law. The decision - the culmination of an eight-year battle over the power of Congress to regulate state conduct of elections - marked the closing of a chapter in American politics. That chapter had opened a century earlier in the case of Guinn v. United States, which ushered in national efforts to knock down racial barriers to the ballot.

All Americans, liberal or conservative, religious or not, can agree that religious freedom, anchored in conscience rights, is foundational to the US democratic experiment. But what freedom of conscience means, what its scope and limits are, according to the Constitution - these are matters for heated debate.

Unapologetically punk, the essays in Thunder Song segue from the miraculous to the mundane, from the spiritual to the physical, as they examine the role of art—in particular music—and community in helping a new generation of indigenous people claim the strength of their heritage while defining their own path in the contemporary world.

In this unflinching, honest narrative, an award-winning journalist discovers his family’s heritage as slave owners in the South and grapples openly with his whiteness to inspire others to do the same. "Bracing, candid, and rueful." —Kirkus Baynard Woods thought he had escaped the backwards...

Holiness: The Life of God in the Soul of the Believer by Matthew Jones What does it truly mean to be holy? For many believers, the word “holiness” feels distant—something reserved for church leaders or saints of old. Yet Scripture calls every Christian to it: “Be ye holy; for I am holy.” In Holiness: The Life of God in the Soul of the Believer, Matthew Jones guides readers back to the heart of that calling. Writing from a Classical Dispensational perspective, he unfolds holiness not as a burden to carry, but as the believer’s birthright under grace—a divine life already ...

With a tarot deck in hand, listeners will learn how to identify and access ancestral gifts, messages, powers, protectors, and healers. Tarot expert Nancy Hendrickson guides listeners through the basics of finding recent ancestors, and navigating the confusing maze of DNA and ethnic heritage. As a longtime tarot enthusiast, she shows listeners how to incorporate a metaphysical tool into a world of tradition.

A searing memoir that explores the institutions that defined a Puerto Rican woman and what she unlearned to rediscover herself "A lushly written, deeply felt investigation into the meanings of home, lineage and selfhood." —Melissa Febos, bestselling author of Body Work and Girlhood...

A LIVING LEGACY: CULTURE, FAITH, AND THE FUTURE OF APPALACHIA (Part 2 of "Beyond Elegy: Appalachia's True Story of Resilience and Hope") By Laurel Ridgewater In this compelling second volume, A Living Legacy delves deeper into the heart and soul of contemporary Appalachia, exploring the vibrant cultural traditions, spiritual foundations, and emerging future of this complex region. Through rich storytelling and meticulous research, this work illuminates how Appalachia’s traditional values and modern aspirations interweave to create a tapestry of resilience and innovation. Key explorations ...

Brought to you by Penguin. Since the inception of mainstream art history, Blackness has been distinctly ignored. In Reframing Blackness, art historian and founder of @ABlackHistoryOfArt, Alayo Akinkugbe challenges this void. Exploring the presentation of Black figures in Western art, Blackness...

One night in 48 BCE, a tactical blaze meant to cripple a fleet licked from ship timbers to a mud-streaked quay and into warehouses rumored to hold the world’s notebooks. What followed is less a neat tally of lost scrolls than an old wound that would grow teeth: an emblem of how fragile memory can be when it lives in buildings, markets, and politics rather than in abstract ideals. This book does not try to inventory every missing title. It moves instead from the crackle of kindling to the slow work of historians—catalogues, palimpsests, scattered quotations—and asks why the story of a ...

At its core, African folklore embodies the soul of the continent, reflecting its diverse peoples, landscapes, and histories. This book delves into the rich landscape of African folklore, exploring its diverse cultures, traditions, and storytelling techniques. Through a combination of historical context and literary analysis, listeners will gain a deeper understanding of the significance of folktales in African societies and learn how to effectively engage in the art of storytelling for both pleasure and profit.

In the tradition of Maya Angelou's Phenomenal Woman, best-selling author Pearl Cleage brings us an inspiring poem for all women, destined to become a classic.

"The numerous voices presenting these oral histories are flowing, velvety, glib, humorous, and always passionate...This is an informative and heartwarming retrospective of life in the Bronx, in addition to an enlightening look at the changes in our society and culture." — Publishers Weekly...

There is, in America, an intangible university of sorts - invisible, self-propagated, and silently teaching Black Americans to disrespect and look down on their own racial kinsmen. This mis-educational institution is built on a foundation of demonstrably false ideas, long lingering myths, and hateful half-truths that have, over the years, legitimized themselves in our minds and decimated our power to effectively respond to our own problems, and, do for the world what we did at the dawn of civilization.

Born in the USA, the son of an African father and an American mother, a boy who spent his childhood in Indonesia and Hawaii, Barack Obama is truly a citizen of the world. His campaign for the presidency is powered by a fierce optimism, an exuberant sense of purpose and determination, and, above all, a belief that change can happen.