Black Miami in the Twentieth Century - (Florida History and Culture) by Marvin Dunn (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

The first book devoted to the history of African Americans in south Florida and their pivotal role in the growth and development of Miami, Black Miami in the Twentieth Century traces their triumphs, drudgery, horrors, and courage during the first 100 years of the city's history. Firsthand accounts and over 130 photographs, many of them never published before, bring to life the proud heritage of Miami's black community.

Beginning with the legendary presence of black pirates on Biscayne Bay, Marvin Dunn sketches the streams of migration by which blacks came to account for nearly half the city's voters at the turn of the century. From the birth of a new neighborhood known as "Colored Town," Dunn traces the blossoming of black businesses, churches, civic groups, and fraternal societies that made up the black community. He recounts the heyday of "Little Broadway" along Second Avenue, with photos and individual recollections that capture the richness and vitality of black Miami's golden age between the wars.

A substantial portion of the book is devoted to the Miami civil rights movement, and Dunn traces the evolution of Colored Town to Overtown and the subsequent growth of Liberty City. He profiles voting rights, housing and school desegregation, and civil disturbances like the McDuffie and Lozano incidents, and analyzes the issues and leadership that molded an increasingly diverse community through decades of strife and violence. In concluding chapters, he assesses the current position of the community--its socioeconomic status, education issues, residential patterns, and business development--and considers the effect of recent waves of immigration from Latin America and the Caribbean.

Dunn combines exhaustive research in regional media and archives with personal interviews of pioneer citizens and longtime residents in a work that documents as never before the life of one of the most important black communities in the United States.

Review Quotes

"Dunn illuminates the peculiarities of Miami's civil rights activism"--Journal of African American History "Makes it clear that the future of blacks in Miami will in large part determine the future of the city itself."--Miami Today


"A lucid, balanced history of Miami's diverse, black population."--American Studies


"An informative profile of the black experience in twentieth-century Miami."--Journal of Southern History


"As the story enters the contemporary era, the author devotes separate chapters to the civil rights movement, school desegregation, racial riots and disturbances, the criminal justice system, and immigration."--Florida Historical Quarterly


"Brings to life the heritage of Miami's black community."--Publishers Weekly


"From the black pirates of Biscayne Bay to the election of U.S. Rep. Carrie Meek, the history of African Americans in South Florida--like that of blacks everywhere--has been punctuated by triumph, horror, drudgery, and courage. . . . Marvin Dunn gives us the first comprehensive look at what the path has been like for the individuals, businesses, churches, civic groups and fraternal societies that cast their lot with this young community and how, even in the worst of times, they have held on."--Miami Herald

About the Author

Marvin Dunn, professor emeritus of psychology at Florida International University, is coauthor of The Miami Riot of 1980: Crossing the Bounds.