I'll Find a Way or Make One: A Tribute to Historically Black Colleges and Universities Hardcover - 2004

From the publisher

From Juan Williams, author of Eyes on the Prize, and the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund comes a must-have gift book and definitive resource that explores the historical, social, and cultural importance of America's 107 historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs).

HBCUs have graduated such illustrious leaders as Oprah Winfrey, Thurgood Marshall, Spike Lee, W. E. B. DuBois, Debbie Allen, Alain Locke, Samuel L. Jackson, and Nikki Giovanni. This commemorative illustrated gift book is filled with photographs, historical narrative, personal memoir, archival and contemporary material, and anecdotal and resource information. It is the first of its kind -- a groundbreaking retrospective that explores the dramatic development and history of America's historically black colleges and universities.

Stories abound about the abolition of slavery. However, lesser known are the efforts -- both prior to and after the Civil War -- of African American and white abolitionists banding together to formally educate newly freed slaves. Through the tireless work of government organizations, black churches, missionary groups, and philanthropists, HBCUs were established. The tales of how these schools were created and of the individuals who are linked to the schools' histories are extraordinarily rich -- and sometimes controversial. In an unprecedented salute to America's 107 historically black colleges and universities, I'll Find a Way or Make One chronicles the formation of the black middle class, the history of education in the African American community, and some of the most important events of African Americana and American history.