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The novel's main character, Joey, is introduced in this excerpt. Joey is full of spunk, but he also has trouble focusing and controlling all of his urges—which sometimes leads him to make bad choices.

Hussein, the narrator of My Name Was Hussein, lives in Bulgaria. His Muslim family takes great pride in their religion and traditions. But soldiers soon arrive in their village and force all of the Muslims to adopt Christian names, thereby inhibiting their freedom and identities.

Maleeka gets made fun of at school about her clothes, her grades, even the color of her skin. In this chapter, one of her teachers, with white blotches on her face, shows how she's been able to accept the skin she's in.

Reverend Noel Koestline and Reverend Spencer Turnipseed remember Turnipseed's sister, Marti, the first white student to join Birmingham's sit-in movement.

This news segment from 2000 recalls the march that took place in Selma, Ala. on March 7, 1965. This day, known as Bloody Sunday, was marked by violent attacks by state and local police upon protesters as they reached the end of Selma’s Edmund Pettus Bridge.

In 1920, Tennessee lawmaker Harry Burn followed his mother’s advice on a controversial vote—and changed voting rights history.

This essay introduces the Universal Negro Improvement Association and some of its core beliefs, such as the idea that all African-descended people should work together to achieve preservation and independce from whites at home and abroad, particularly in Africa.

Toby and Clemmie love each other very much. Sometimes Clemmie has to go to the hospital though, and it can be scary. Luckily, Toby and Clemmie know how to make the best out of every situation—even ones that involve a trip to the hospital.

Suzanne Bilyeu details how Jackie Robinson's gift for playing ball eventually united a team of 30 men and gave hope to hundreds of thousands of African Americans. These feats came at a great cost to Robinson physically, mentally and emotionally as he endured hate and hardships on and off the field