International Relations Events
[PAST EVENT] Book Talk: Water Tossing Boulders, led by Author Adrienne Berard
Location
Reves Center for International Studies, Reves Room200 S Boundary St
Williamsburg, VA 23185Map this location
Access & Features
- Open to the public
The William & Mary Confucius Institute is pleased to welcome award-winning author and journalist Adrienne Berard to lead a talk on Water Tossing Boulders: How a Family of Chinese Immigrants Led the Fight to Desegregate Schools in the Jim Crow South on Friday, November 10th, in the Reves Room at the Reves Center for International Studies. The book talk will be held from 4:00 - 5:30 pm, and will be followed by a reception, which will last until 6:00 pm.
Adrienne Berard's book Water Tossing Boulders: How a Family of Chinese Immigrants Led the Fight to Desegregate Schools in the Jim Crow South follows the true story of the Lum family, who immigrated from southern China to the American South in the early 20th Century. Unfortunately, when their daughters Martha and Berda were to start middle school, this family's hope for a better life was met with a grim obstacle, one which plagued the United States for decades on end: segregation. The local school was for whites only, which meant that these girls could not attend. This event was the catalyst which would eventually lead to Gong Lum v. Rice, the first Supreme Court Case to challenge racial segregation in Southern schools. In telling this piece of history, Berard brings to light this little-known tale of an immigrant family?s struggle to try and close the gap between the American dream and America?s reality.
Contact
757-221-1286 or [[wmci]]