Wet Ink!

We Are One: The Story of Bayard Rustin

**2008 Jane Addams Book Award**

**2008 Norman A. Sugarman Award for Biography**

**2008 "Books for the Teen Age" list (NY Public Library)**

Bayard (pronounced BUY-ard) Rustin was a man with purpose--and a man with heart. His was a life dedicated to helping others--fighting injustices and discriminations--so that people could live as one. He made his mark working alongside African American labor-leader A. Philip Randolph and provided guidance to Martin Luther King, Jr., about the techniques and principles of Gandhi's nonviolent protest throughout King's short but remarkable civil rights career. He was thrust upon the world stage in 1963 when he spearheaded the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Kirkus (Sep. 1, 2007) had this to say about it: "An effective mix of major historical events and small, telling anecdotes, along with the attractive photo-essay format, make this a fascinating volume, informative and well written."

From the book:

For a summer morning in Washington, D.C., the day dawned clear and mercifully cool. It was Wednesday, August 28, 1963, and Bayard thought he would stroll to the Washington Monument to see how the march was shaping up. Less than eight weeks earlier, he had promised journalists and black leaders that he would deliver one hundred thousand protesters to the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom--protesters united to voice their grievances against a government that had failed them. If everything went according to his plan, it would be the largest mass protest in the history of the United States. If everything went according to his plan, it would be a day to remember and a day the nation could not ignore.

Everything hinged on if.

We Are One: The Story of Bayard Rustin

from School Library Journal (starred review): "A gem for students...and an excellent addition to any American history collection." (Nov. 2007)

from Miami Family Magazine: "Well-known author Larry Dane Brimner's powerful writing shows his careful attention to historic detail in language that captures the courageous work of a dynamic individual, who was committed to resist injustice nonviolently. Interspersed with archival photographs and the spirituals and protest songs Rustin often sang, are insightful sidebars and quotes. An author's note at the end adds dimension to the life of this diversely gifted 'intellectual engineer' and dreamer of the civil rights movement." (September 2007)

from VOYA (Voice of Youth Advocates): 4Q "...an excellent biography for a middle grade reader. An older reader would find it a good jumping off point for a deeper exploration of several topics--Rustin's life, the story of nonviolent protest, or the history of the civil rights movement in America. The prose flows easily, and the pictures are dynamic with captions that expand upon the text. Brimner sets Rustin in the context of the twentieth century and includes informative sidebars about African American history." (December 2007)

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