Wayne Dawkins

Wayne Dawkins’s biography of Emanuel Celler, the under-appreciated immigration and civil rights champion, ably chronicles the accomplishments of the New York Congressman, whose decades long commitment to those causes led the the landmark passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the immigration reforms of 1965, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and many other victories along the way. Dawkins provides ample context for Celler’s activism, highlighting his life experiences, the prevailing racist, anti-Semitic, and anti-immigration sentiment and policies that pervaded the era, and the impact of the seismic shift that his persistence precipitated. Within the narrative, a portrait of Celler’s personality is clearly drawn, from his dogged tenacity to his wit and humor. With insights into the legislative process and political battles, the book displays exemplary research, and Dawkins’s style provides a highly readable, yet scholarly, profile of a true unsung hero of the civil rights movement.… (meer)