The Black Revolution on Campus is the definitive account of an extraordinary but forgotten chapter of the black freedom struggle. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Black students organized hundreds of protests that sparked a period of crackdown, negotiation, and reform that profoundly transformed college life. At stake was the very mission of higher education. Black students demanded that public universities serve their communities; that private universities rethink the mission of elite education; and that black colleges embrace self-determination and resist the threat of integration. Most crucially, black students demanded a role in the definition of scholarly knowledge. Martha Biondi masterfully combines impressive research with a wealth of interviews from participants to tell the story of how students turned the slogan "black power" into a social movement. Vividly demonstrating the critical linkage between the student movement and changes in university culture, Biondi illustrates how victories in establishing Black Studies ultimately produced important intellectual innovations that have had a lasting impact on academic research and university curricula over the past 40 years. This book makes a major contribution to the current debate on Ethnic Studies, access to higher education, and opportunity for all.

About the Author
Martha Biondi is Associate Professor of African American Studies and History at Northwestern University. She is the author of To Stand and Fight: The Struggle for Civil Rights in Postwar New York City.

Reviews
"Thoroughly researched, beautifully written, and a fascinating piece of history . . . an exceptional piece of scholarship, and a book greatly worth reading." * Washington Spectator *
"Biondi's work offers a fresh perspective on the student protest era, acknowledging the major and overlooked contributions of Black students." * Booklist *
"Biondi's book is a very powerful chronicle of the struggle and strategizing that moved seemingly immovable institutions toward change." * Souls *
"Enriches our understanding of the vital, if often undervalued and understudied, role of black students in linking campus radicalism to broader struggles for racial and economic justice and in calling public attention to issues of diversity in higher education. . . . The Black Revolution on Campus is a valuable addition to our understanding of the modern black freedom movement, student activism, and the institutionalization of black studies as an agent of change in higher education." * Academe *
"The most comprehensive account of black studies founding generations. . . . [A] nuanced telling of the creation of black studies programs." * Journal of American History *
"Deep and interesting. . . . Provides a sweeping view of the birth of Black studies. . . . Biondi succeeds in creating a first-rate book that should be considered necessary reading for those interested in student activism and in stiutional change, current debates on ethnic studies, and black intellectual history." * American Historical Review *
"The Black Revolution on Campus does contribute to our understanding of 1960s black student activism and the rise of Black Studies, and deserves close examination." * Journal of African American History *



Book Information
ISBN 9780520282186
Author Martha Biondi
Format Paperback
Page Count 366
Imprint University of California Press
Publisher University of California Press
Weight(grams) 499g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 25mm