A book to have at home
Caribbean Life, March 20-26, 2020 35
By Terri Schlichenmeyer
You are not safe.
How scary is that? If someone
told you that your life was
in danger right now, and they
were serious, what would you
do? Where would you go, and
who would you seek for help?
In the new book “Making Our
Way Home” by Blair Imani,
your ancestors may have looked
for answers to those questions
hundreds of miles away.
In the months after President
Lincoln’s Emancipation
Proclamation “marked the
beginning of the end of… slavery
in the United States,” it
quickly became apparent that
equality for Black people in
many places wasn’t going to
happen – in fact, in some areas
of the U.S., racism and Jim
Crow laws kept even the smallest
advantage out of the reach
of newly–freed slaves. It was
frustrating, disorienting, and
it could be dangerous: people
were sometimes lynched and
killed just for living their lives.
At around the turn of the
last century, Black Americans
began to hear that life in the
North and West was better –
maybe not totally equal, but
jobs were plentiful, decent
housing was easier to get, education
was available for Black
children, and some companies
even helped Black workers get
settled in a new life. Tens of
thousands of Black Southerners
headed to New York, Chicago,
and parts North, while
others went to California and
Oklahoma.
When World War I began,
Black soldiers did their part in
the effort and were proud to
do it. After they came home,
though, they were disappointed
to see that nothing had changed
at all; the same thing happened
at the end of World War II, after
men and women alike served
at home and abroad: inequality
was still in force here in the
States. This started the “second
wave” of the Great Migration:
at the end of both wars, Black
Americans headed North and
West, including Black musicians,
singers, athletes, writers,
and scholars.
And yet, there was still “disillusionment
and frustration,”
at continued inequality, which
“laid the foundation of the Civil
Rights movement”…
Much as you hate to judge
a book by its cover (weren’t we
warned about that?), it may be
hard for your child not to do
with “Making Our Way Home.”
On the outside, this book
looks an awful lot like a text
book. That’s unfortunate,
because author Blair Imani
packs a superb amount of story
inside the covers, and history
isn’t the only thing your child
will get here. Imani also writes
about the people who migrated,
moves which opened doors
for their unique talents. She
includes LGBTQ individuals
and those outside the mainstream.
Kids will learn about
social issues and events that
culturally impacted the Great
Migration (which Imani treats
as one event, rather than two
“waves”), and the illustrations
by Rachelle Baker are great
draws to empowering stories.
Ultimately, pride emanates
strongly from the pages
of “Making Our Way Home,”
and that should make it easier
to get your 10-to-15-year-old
interested, despite the books’
academic look. One page is all
it’ll take, and enjoyment is a
safe bet.
“Making Our Way
Home: The Grate Migration
and the Black American
Dream” by Blair
Imani, illustrated by
Rachelle Baker, foreword
by Patrisse Cullors
c.2020, Ten Speed Press
$18.99 / $24.99 Canada
180 pages
Book cover of “Making Our Way Home.”