Strike the Hammer - by Laura Warren Hill (Paperback)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

On July 24, 1964, chaos erupted in Rochester, New York. Strike the Hammer examines the unrest--rebellion by the city's Black community, rampant police brutality--that would radically change the trajectory of the Civil Rights movement. After overcoming a violent response by State Police, the fight for justice, in an upstate town rooted in black power movements, was reborn. That resurgence owed much to years of organizing and resistance in the community.

Laura Warren Hill examines Rochester's long Civil Rights history and, drawing extensively on oral accounts of the northern, urban community, offers rich and detailed stories of the area's protest tradition. Augmenting oral testimonies with records from the NAACP, SCLC, and the local FIGHT, Strike the Hammer paints a compelling picture of the foundations for the movement.

Now, especially, this story of struggle for justice and resistance to inequality resonates. Hill leads us to consider the social, political, and economic environment more than fifty years ago and how that founding generation of activists left its mark on present-day Rochester.

Review Quotes

In Strike the Hammer, a history of the Black Freedom Struggle in New York, Laura Warren Hill builds a compelling case for expanding the study of Black Power beyond the large urban areas. Methodologically, Hill's work as an oral historian is prodigious. The oral histories she conducted and drew from painted a picture of coalitions and neighborhoods that embraced diverse political stances. Analytically, Strike the Hammer illuminates how smaller urban areas with smaller Black communities bred their own Black Power movements.

Overall, Strike the Hammer is well-researched and presented. The addition of oral history interviews with community leaders helps explain the local issues facing Rocherster's Black community and is a valuable addition to the historical record.

About the Author

Laura Warren Hill is Associate Professor of History at Bloomfield College. She is the co-editor of The Business of Black Power and has published in Journal for the Study of Radicalism and Journal of African American History. Follow her on X @Mohojolo.