About this ebook
Although the book presents my own families' histories, it is really a parable for everyone's family history. Whether we came here long ago or last year; whether we are of European, African, Hispanic, Asian or Native American heritage, we have all been affected by the experience of being enslaved or of holding slaves.
The thesis of the book is that the experience of holding other people as slaves was the origin of racism in the United States, and that that particular kind of racism has affected all of us--and even affects people who have never lived here.
About the author
Margaret Blackburn White, Ph.D., was born in Dandridge, Tennessee. An educator, writer and social activist, she has taught at universities in Buffalo and Rochester, New York; Seoul, Korea; Manila, Philippines; and Goddard College and Norwich University in Vermont. After her retirement as Professor Emerita from Norwich University she became a founding editor of The Diversity Factor, a quarterly journal dealing with issues of racism, sexism, homophobia and other forms of discrimination in the corporate world. She is the author of several other books and numerous articles. Since her retirement she has been active in social issues such as police brutality against people of color, affordable housing, the problems of undocumented immigrants, and systemic discrimination in educational, religious, and other major institutions in our society. In 1999 she was a co-founder of the Teaneck Community Chorus, a singing group formed with the purpose of reflecting the diversity of the community of Teaneck, New Jersey, both in its membership and its repertoire. She presently divides her time between Teaneck, New Jersey, and the family farm near Dandridge, Tennessee.
