Jeffrey B. Perry

"'Reds at the Blackboard,' Clarence Taylor's superb history of the left-led New York City Teachers' Union (1916-1964), fills a void in the historical record of teacher unionism and education in the United States, providing important background on recurring controversies of curriculum, due process, academic freedom, testing, transfers, community involvement, civil rights, and the need for more Black and Latino teachers. This meticulously researched and insightful history of an important social justice union contributes significantly to our understanding of Civil Rights and left history, and it offers important background on the rise of the United Federation of Teachers and the 1968 New York City teacher strikes and community control struggles. It is a timely contribution to the current climate of growing economic depression, persistent racial disparities, war, educational crises, charter schools, and often fractured teacher union and community relations." — Jeffrey B. Perry, author of "Hubert Harrison: The Voice of Harlem Radicalism, 1883-1918" -- For more information see http://cup.columbia.edu/book/978-0-231-15268-6/reds-at-the-blackboard/reviews