Climbing the Rough Side of the Mountain: The Extraordinary Story of Love, Civil Rights, and Labor Activism

Norman and Velma Hill are labor and civil rights activists who have spent over 60 years fighting for equality and civil and workers rights. Their inspiring joint memoir, Climbing the Rough Side of the Mountain, chronicles their struggles, triumphs, and frustrations in their tireless work as 'crusaders for democracy.' They share their earliest memories of facing racial segregation, working with Martin Luther King Jr., and organizing workers into unions. They also reveal how they kept white supremacists like David Duke from taking office, met with Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, and continued to work tirelessly, fighting the good fight and challenging power with truth.

Format: Hardback
Length: 432 pages
Publication date: 21 December 2023
Publisher: Post Hill Press

The remarkable tale of a couple who joined forces during the civil rights movement and dedicated more than sixty years of their lives to fighting for equality, civil, and workers' rights, triumphing over adversity with the unwavering strength of their love and commitment, and ultimately bringing about meaningful change.

"A chronicle of lives of unwavering dedication. Now in their 80s, labor and civil rights activists Norman and Velma Hill recount more than six decades of struggles, triumphs, and frustrations in their tireless work as 'crusaders for democracy.' An inspiring joint memoir." - Kirkus Reviews

When Velma Murphy was struck unconscious by a brick hurled by a man from an enraged white mob and carried away by Norman Hill, it marked the beginning of a six-decade-long love story and the turmoil, excitement, and struggle for civil rights and labor movements. In Climbing the Rough Side of the Mountain, the Hills reflect upon their more than half-century of fighting to make America realize its greatest potential.

Through profound conversations between the two, Velma and Norman Hill share their earliest memories of facing racial segregation in the 1960s, working alongside Martin Luther King Jr., Bayard Rustin, and A. Philip Randolph, crossing paths with Malcolm X and Stokely Carmichael. They also reveal how they prevented white supremacists like David Duke from assuming office, organized workers into unions, met with Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, and continued to work tirelessly, fighting the good fight and successfully challenging power with truth.

Weight: 598g
Dimension: 161 x 238 x 33 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9798888452820