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George Henry White: An Even Chance in the Race of Life
 
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George Henry White: An Even Chance in the Race of Life [Paperback]

Benjamin R. Justesen (Author)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)

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Justesen chronicles the life and times of an extraordinary man, rescuing from relative obscurity the first black man to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives. White was born into a poor North Carolina farm family. Through personal ambition and determination, he went on to become educator, lawyer, businessman, and politician. Justesen details the politics of the South during and after Reconstruction, black loyalty to the Republicans (the party of Lincoln), and the virulent backlash of white racists. White was actively engaged in local party politics, embroiled in everything from reapportionment efforts to a heated rivalry with his brother-in-law Henry Cheatham. White challenged racial injustice and social inequities, sponsoring anti-lynching bills and allying with other prominent black leaders, including Booker T. Washington. When racial politics drove blacks from the Republican party, White maintained his struggle for racial justice but was unable to recover professionally. It would be nearly 30 years before another black man was elected to the U.S. Congress. This book is a fascinating look at the machinations of politics and the personal and professional challenges to the first black U.S. Congressman. Vanessa Bush
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5.0 out of 5 stars A Man Ahead of His Time, April 26 2001
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This review is from: George Henry White: An Even Chance in the Race of Life (Paperback)
I know the author of this book, and that is what first interested me in reading it. But I quickly learned there was more to George White than the novelty of being the only African American in Congress (1897-1901). He was a talented, accomplished man--ahead of his time in choosing to combine successful public and private careers with an unusual attention to the less fortunate of his own race. He faced a momentous decision at the turn of the century: accept the new segregation oin the United States, and the disfranchisement that came with it, or condemn both and fight them. he chose the latter, and effectively ended his own political career. But he remains a fascinating man, and one well worth reading about. I recommend you read this book!
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5.0 out of 5 stars Little-Known Renaissance Man From NC, Feb 27 2001
By 
Laura G. Carter "Castlebreaker" (Reidsville, NC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: George Henry White: An Even Chance in the Race of Life (Paperback)
George Henry White represented North Carolina in Congress from 1897 until 1901. When he left, he became the last man of his race to be elected to Congress during the post-Reconstruction era, leaving a void which would not be filled for nearly 30 years (North Carolina didn't elect another African-American to Congress until 1992). White became, sadly, an historical footnote.

Benjamin Justesen has performed an intense labor of love in resurrecting White's story. Armed with prodigious amounts of careful research - reflected in the copious footnotes sprinkled throughout the text - and his own personal determination to bring this biography to public attention, Justesen has realized his dream of writing George Henry White's life story after becoming acquainted with his subject while working as a reporter in the 1970s.

He brings to life the issues and prejudices of the period, which only serve to magnify the high principles to which White held himself. Believing that education and one's own hard work got one where one wanted to go, White proved his beliefs in a time when Southern public sentiment was gradually moving into its shameful Jim Crow era.

A lawyer, politician, banker, real estate developer, family man and man of faith, George Henry White is a model for anyone today - black or white - who thinks, "I cannot." His life is an example to us all, and his biography a fascinating look at both a man and an era in Southern history.

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5.0 out of 5 stars The man of the hour at the turn of the century, Jan 21 2001
By 
Benjamin R. Justesen (Alexandria, Virginia USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: George Henry White: An Even Chance in the Race of Life (Paperback)
At the outset: I'm the author, and of course, I'm partial to my own book. But I'm also immersed in the subject, having spent the last four years of my life bringing George White's story to readers. George White was a fascinating man, but one about whom little is known today: the first African American to serve in Congress in the 20th century (retiring in 1901) and the last of 22 to serve from the South after the Civil War until the 1970s. He was a stalwart Republican, and served alone in the Congress for four years. But he was more than a token--an accomplished teacher, lawyer, prosecutor, developer and banker. He deserves to be studied in depth; my attempt is the baseline, a painstakingly drawn outline, based on a careful study of limited evidence. Judge for yourself--and then place him in his rightful position in our history, as the intriguing, honest, flawed but eminently admirable individual he was. I recommend him--and this book--highly!
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