About this book:

*Black North America: A Social and Political History of African Descendants* offers a comprehensive continental survey of the Black experience, tracing the journey from the coerced migrations of the transatlantic slave trade to twenty-first-century social movements. By examining the diverse colonial landscapes of the British, French, and Spanish empires, the book illustrates how enslaved and free Black communities navigated varying legal regimes to forge distinct identities. It emphasizes that Black history is not merely a subset of national narratives but a primary driver in the formation of the United States, Canada, and Mexico, characterized by a persistent tension between systemic oppression and creative agency.

The narrative highlights the centrality of resistance, ranging from large-scale rebellions and the establishment of maroon communities to "everyday" acts of defiance and the preservation of African cultural and spiritual traditions. The text explores how foundational institutions—specifically the Black church and mutual aid societies—provided the infrastructure for survival and political mobilization long before formal emancipation. As the book moves through the eras of Reconstruction, the Great Migration, and Jim Crow, it documents the sophisticated intellectual traditions and labor movements that articulated visions of citizenship and economic justice in the face of state-sanctioned violence and the rise of the carceral state.

In its later chapters, the book focuses on the internal diversity of the Black diaspora, foregrounding the contributions of Black feminism, queer activism, and the impact of post-1965 migration from Africa and the Caribbean. It situates the mid-century Civil Rights and Black Power movements within a global context of Pan-Africanism and anti-colonial struggle. By concluding with an analysis of contemporary digital activism and the Movement for Black Lives, the book underscores the enduring resilience of African descendants as they continue to challenge structural inequalities and imagine transformative futures across the North American continent.

What You'll Find Inside:

• The book presents Black North America as a continental phenomenon, tracing interconnected communities from Canada to Mexico and showing how African-descended peoples forged identities beyond national borders through shared resistance and cultural innovation.
• Resistance is central to the narrative, examining everything from maroon communities and armed rebellions to everyday acts of defiance like cultural preservation, mutual aid, and clandestine education as ongoing struggles against oppression.
• Cultural contributions—including blues, jazz, literature, visual arts, and religious innovations—are highlighted as emergent from Black community infrastructures, serving as both reflections of struggle and powerful critiques of dominant society.
• The evolution of Black political thought is explored across centuries, from abolitionist writings and early institutions to Black feminism, queer theory, Pan-Africanism, and contemporary movements like Black Lives Matter, showing continuity in the fight for liberation.
• Historical patterns of migration, segregation, state violence, and economic exploitation are analyzed to reveal how past struggles for freedom directly inform and contextualize twenty-first-century movements for racial justice and equity.

Who's It For:

This book is essential reading for undergraduate and graduate students in African American history, African diaspora studies, sociology, and ethnic studies seeking a comprehensive continental framework. It will also deeply benefit activists, community organizers, and educators looking for historical context to inform contemporary racial justice work, as well as general readers committed to understanding the systemic roots of anti-Black racism and Black resilience across North America. Scholars interested in transnational Black politics, cultural history, and the long civil rights movement will find particular value in its interdisciplinary approach and attention to gender, sexuality, and global solidarities.