How It Feels to Be Free: Black Women Entertainers and the Civil Rights Movement

The author's two-fold argument that culture played a critical role in the civil rights movement and that black women entertainers exemplified this proposition is really appealing. However the book is a mile wide in looking at the lives of six performers – Diahann Carroll, Cicely Tyson, Nina Simone, Abby Lincoln, Lena Horne, and Miriam Makeba – and an inch deep in that not much about each or about all of them together is covered. The author relied upon the written record for information. Since these performers – and black women in general – have not received their just due in the media and books, not much has been documented. I wish the author had interviewed the two living legends – Carroll and Tyson – so that she could have captured their own words about how they think about their work in the context of the civil rights movement.

Excellent history about incredible African African women

The six Black women who where the subjects of Ruth Feldstein's book "How It Feels to Be Free:Black Women In The Civil Rights Movement basically answered the question this way: it feels liberated, pretty, smart, large and in-charge, bossy, talented and loved.

that ended up being a great read, I purchased it for my kindle but I wish I would have gotten a hardcopy. Such an interesting book if you are interested in the civil rights movement circa 1950-1978

Gave as a gift.

I came back to this book after watching the wonderful PBS documentary (produced by Alicia Keys) based on Ruth Feldstein's brilliant examination of the political significance of black female entertainers during the Civil Rights era. The book is both fascinating and accessible--Feldstein writes cultural and political history that sings. The chapter on Nina Simone is breathtaking. Any reader compelled by the urgency of our contemporary reckonings with racism, sexism, "intersectional" politics, and the meanings of popular culture should read this book.

Enjoyed every page!

I'm fascinated by the ways that popular culture plays a role in politics, and Feldstein's book does an excellent job of showing how black female performers were making civil rights real in their music, TV roles, and movies. Each chapter takes on a different performer (or two), and they are all fascinating and surprising, taking up figures like Lena Horne, Cicely Tyson, and Abbey Lincoln, and showing how the choices they made mattered to the ideas of equality, black pride, and feminist consciousness. But my favorite chapters are the ones on the South African singer Miram Makeba and the glorious songstress Nina Simone. Makeba's story was new to me: she was first presented in the 1950s as an exotic bit of Africa by her mentor Harry Belafonte; she later became far more political and even married Stokely Carmichael. And Simone .... wow. The discussion of her as a singer and a political activist -- I loved hearing more about the song "Mississippi Goddam." Overall, this is a great book, that people should have on their go-to list to give to friends or family.

Coup d’œil diagonal peu convaincant: listes de noms et anecdotes.J'espère en avoir un peu plus, vu que l'auteure a une réputation qui la précède.Donc notation à revoir après lecture.