Bücher veröffentlicht von Learning Moments Press

VOICES FROM THE FIRING LINE is a memoir, a tribute, and a eulogy. Ralph Proctor traces his own development from a naive, "e;color-blind,"e; youth to a militant advocate for equal justice. Adding to his own account are the voices of other leaders in Pittsburgh's civil rights movement. In recording and sharing the experiences of these remarkable men and women, Proctor offers a tribute to their pain, courage, and sacrifice. Through numerous examples of covert discrimination, the pervasive Jim Crow culture is revealed along with efforts to overcome barriers to integration. In the final analysis, the book is a eulogy for The Hill, one of the most vibrant Black enclaves in the United States. Proctor looks back at the gains achieved and the losses incurred as the movement for equal inclusion waned in the years following the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. He asks, "e;Did we do enough?"e; The question, while posed to his comrades in the fight for justice, is worth asking ourselves today.

The death of an adult sibling precipitates a flood of emotions in the surviving sisters and brothers. Feelings of grief are not easily "gotten over" in neatly ordered stages. Neither are efforts to make sense of the loss and come to terms with an irreparable hole in one's family constellation. In Part 1 of The Oxidation of Grief, Maria Piantanida shares her responses to her younger sister's death from renal cancer. Mingled with expressions of grief are Maria's struggles with notions of spirituality, faith, belief, and the meaning of life. Part 2 of the book consists of narratives of adult sibling loss. These narrative were crafted from interviews with thirteen men and women who lost one or more siblings under unexpected (sometimes catastrophic) circumstances, chronic disease, or terminal illness. In sharing both her own reflections and those of others, Maria hopes that others may find comfort in knowing they are not alone as they cope with the death of an adult sibling.