Before the Movement

"Penningroth's conclusions emerge from an epic research agenda.... Before the Movement presents an original and provocative account of how civil law was experienced by Black citizens and how their 'legal lives' changed over time . . . [an] ambitious, stimulating, and provocative book." -Eric Foner, New York Review of BooksWinner of the Beveridge Award, American Historical AssociationWinner of the Littleton-Griswold Prize, American Historical AssociationFinalist for the Cundill History PrizeWinner of the Order of the Coif Book AwardWinner of the James Willard Hurst Prize, Law and Society AssociationWinner of the John Philip Reid Award, American Society for Legal HistoryWinner of the Charles Sydnor Award, Southern Historical AssociationWinner of the Merle Curti Social History Award, Organization of American HistoriansWinner of the Ellis W. Hawley Prize, Organization of American HistoriansWinner of the PEN Oakland Josephine Miles AwardWinner of the Scribes Book AwardWinner of the David J. Langum, Sr. Prize in American Legal HistoryShortlisted for the Ralph Waldo Emerson Award, Phi Beta KappaShortlisted for the Stone Book Award, Museum of African American HistoryShortlisted for the Mark Lynton History Prize, Columbia Journalism SchoolA prize-winning scholar draws on astonishing new research to demonstrate how Black people used the law to their advantage long before the Civil Rights Movement.