A House Built by Slaves: African American Visitors to the Lincoln White House

The book "White" by Los Angeles Review of Books and Publishers Weekly illuminates why Lincolns unprecedented welcoming of African American men and women to the White House transformed the trajectory of race relations in the United States. It draws from primary sources to show how African Americans used the White House as a national stage to amplify their calls for equality.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 288 pages
Publication date: 19 March 2024
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Los Angeles Review of Books deems an accessible book that puts a human face — many human faces — on the story of Lincolns attitudes toward and engagement with African Americans and Publishers Weekly calls a rich and comprehensive account. Widely praised and winner of the 2023 Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize, this book illuminates why Lincolns unprecedented welcoming of African American men and women to the White House transformed the trajectory of race relations in the United States. From his 1862 meetings with Black Christian ministers, Lincoln began inviting African Americans of every background into his home, from ex-slaves from the Deep South to champions of abolitionism such as Frederick Douglass and Sojourner Truth. More than a good-will gesture, the president conferred with his guests about the essential issues of citizenship and voting rights. Drawing from an array of primary sources, White reveals how African Americans used the White House as a national stage to amplify their calls for equality. Even more than 160 years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, Lincolns inclusion of African Americans remains a necessary example in a country still struggling from racial divisions today.

Weight: 390g
Dimension: 227 x 151 x 22 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781538190128