An attempt to size up all the significant events of American Negro life since the Emancipation Proclamation, the emphasis is placed on the first 60-odd years of Negro freedom and the huge strides made in the awkward Reconstruction era and beyond. Also included are highlights of the years since the death of Booker T. Washington in 1915 and a look to the future. An excellent basis for an understanding of the struggle for civil liberties presented in a warm, level-headed backward glance.