Jubilee: The Emergence of African-American Culture

Slaves came to the Americas from many different parts of the African continent, bringing with them distinct languages, religions, and expressive arts. Through essays by leading voices in African-American history and literature, and more than 200 stunning illustrations culled from the Schomburg Center's collection of more than 5 million items, Jubilee shows the many ways that these diverse peoples united, forged their own identity, and laid the foundations for truly unique African-American social, cultural, political, and economic expressions throughout the Western Hemisphere.

"This is that rare title that effortlessly spans audience and age-group divides while it popularizes serious and compelling scholarship…. Never before have the economic and cultural histories of slavery come together so concisely and accessibly…. This is an explosive, necessary book."

--Publishers Weekly

Jubilee is written by Howard Dodson, Director of The New York Public Library's Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture--one of the most prominent institutions of black scholarship in the world. Essays by leading voices in African-American history and literature explore topics such as abolition and emancipation, changes in family life and social development, religion, and the evolution of language, literacy, and education through the end of Reconstruction. This illuminating text is surrounded by more than 200 stunning illustrations, culled from the Schomburg Center's collection of more than 5 million items. From slave ship manifests, manumission papers, and some of the earliest photographs of slaves to carved items that echo African sculpture and freedom quilts with African motifs, the book is richly illustrated in an interactive way that brings to life this crucial transition from slavery to freedom.

Howard Dodson, Director of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture since 1984, is a specialist in African-American history and a noted lecturer, educator, and consultant. The Schomburg Center is the world's most comprehensive public research library devoted exclusively to documenting and interpreting African diasporan history and culture. Dodson has published articles and essays in newspapers, exhibition catalogues, and professional journals.