Books

Item Description

The Courage to Hope: How I Stood Up to the Politics of Fear by Shirley Sherrod was published this year by Simon and Schuster.  

"Shirley Sherrod is an authentic American hero."
                                          Tavis Smiley 

"I am proud to have worked together with [her] in the movement to keep family farmers on the land."
                                           Willie Nelson 

The book is a gripping personal account of growing up in segregation, coming of age in the Civil Rights Movement, working toward an alternative vision of economic justice, and raising up community people as the foremost  heroes of the struggle.

The book is contributed by RDLN and Donor Shirley Sherrod, who is an RDLN Board Member and Graduate of the program.  She earned a master's degree through our arrangement with Antioch University Midwest and she worked under the umbrella of her RDLN Sponsoring Organization, the Federation of Southern Cooperatives, to set up a resource center for small family farmers in Georgia.  This work was her RDLN Field Project, and it provided a model for the Outreach and Technical Assistance provisions of subsequent Farm Bills.  one of the founders of New Communities,

As the world knows, Shirley was falsely accused of racism against a white farm family and forced to resign her position as Georgia Director of Rural Development for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. She was quickly exonerated and acclaimed, and we are proud of her grace and strength through this ordeal, as well as her life-long dedication and accomplishment in rural community development. 

She is a principal in the Sherrod Institute at Cypress Pond and continues a leadership role with the Southern Rural Women's Network (SRBWI) through the Southwest Georgia Project.  

Shirley and her husband Charles Sherrod (first field secretary for the Student NonViolent Coordinating Committee - SNCC) were very active in SNCC and joined with other families to found New Communities, intended to be a self-sufficient Black community.  Segregation interrupted that dream, but it is back on track with a settlement from USDA for past discrimination.

The Rural Development Leadership Network is a national, multicultural social change organization that supports community-based development in poor rural areas through hands-on projects, education, leadership development and networking.

Item Special Note

Bidder is responsible for a Shipping and Handling fee of $6.50, which will be added to the winning bid amount.  If several small items are ordered, only one shipping charge will be applied.  If an item is especially large or requires an international address, an extra amount will be charged for shipping.