"The companion to the PBS television series"--Jacket.

Includes bibliographical references (p. [187]-192) and index.

The Promise of Freedom, 1865-1877 -- Promises Betrayed, 1880-1890 -- New Roads Taken, 1880-1890 -- "Jim Crow Comes to Town," 1890-1896 -- Victories and Defeats, 1897-1900 -- The Worst of Times, 1900-1917 -- Prelude to Change: Between Two Wars, 1918-1931 -- Center Stage for Civil Rights, 1932-1944 -- The Breakthrough, 1945-1954.

Discusses the laws and practices that supported discrimination against African Americans from Reconstruction to the Supreme Court decision that found segregation to be illegal.