Please join us in the bookstore for a very special Publication Day celebration for our friend Professor Damon L. Fordham and his latest book, The 1895 Segregation Fight in South Carolina.
Professor Damon L. Fordham, fearless leader of The Lost Stories of Black Charleston tour and friend of the bookstore (among many other titles), wrote another book! And we are in the very fortunate position of being able to throw a launch party for him - and it - right here in the store!
Join us on publication day - Monday, July 25 - from 5:30 - 7:00 pm to celebrate the release of The 1895 Segregation Fight in South Carolina - a book examining a crucial time in South Carolina history. No one knows the history of race relations in South Carolina, or writes about it, quite like Damon, and on a personal level, we love any chance we get to celebrate him. Please join us for this publication day celebration!
This is a free, in-store event. Please email rsvp@buxtonbooks.com to reserve your spot!
ABOUT THE 1895 SEGREGATION FIGHT IN SOUTH CAROLINA:
In 1895, Senator Benjamin Tillman of South Carolina attempted to solidify his political power. He proposed to rewrite the South Carolina Constitution to deny African Americans their constitutional rights and make racial segregation the law of the state. Six Black leaders—Robert Anderson, Isaiah Reed, Robert Smalls, William J. Whipper, James Wigg and Thomas E. Miller—went to the state capitol in the face of insult and ridicule to make an eloquent stand against these developments. The erudite and forceful addresses of these men drew worldwide headlines but are largely forgotten today. Author Damon L. Fordham attempts to rectify that omission and inspire generations to come.
ABOUT DAMON L. FORDHAM:
Damon Lamar Fordham was born in Spartanburg, SC on December 23, 1964, to Anne Montgomery and was adopted by Pearl and Abraham Fordham of Mt. Pleasant, SC the following year. He received his Master’s Degree in history from the College of Charleston and the Citadel, and his undergraduate degrees at the University of South Carolina in Columbia.
Professor Fordham currently teaches United States and African-American History at Charleston Southern University and The Citadel in Charleston, SC and has taught US History and African-American Studies at the College of Charleston. He was a weekly columnist for the Charleston Coastal Times from 1994 to 1998, as well as the author of Mr. Potts and Me (Charleston: Evening Post Books, 2012) Voices of Black South Carolina-Legend and Legacy (Charleston: History Press, 2009), True Stories of Black South Carolina (Charleston: History Press, 2008) and coauthor of Born to Serve-The Story of the WBEMC in South Carolina in 2006.
Research and articles by Professor Fordham appear in the books Sweetgrass Baskets and the Gullah Tradition by Joyce Coakley, South of Main by Beatrice Hill and Brenda Lee, The Greenwood Encyclopedia of African-American Folklore for the University of Missouri Press, Cecil Williams and Sonny DuBose’s Orangeburg 1968, and The Malcolm X Encyclopedia for the University of Southern Mississippi Press in 2001. He has also commented on history and storytelling for numerous radio and television programs in the United States and the United Kingdom.
Professor Fordham conducts a walking tour called “The Lost Stories of Black Charleston", and has received a citation form the South Carolina House of Representatives for his work in education, historical research, and social justice.
His motto is, "Educate yourself to lead yourself, for if you wait on others to show you the way, you will wait for a long time."