First Published in 1999. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Part 1 Comedies; Chapter 1 The Church Fight, Ruth Gaines-Shelton; Chapter 2 On Striver's Row, Abram Hill; Chapter 3 Simply Heavenly, Langston Hughes, David Martin; Chapter 4 Purlie Victorious, Ossie Davis; Part 2 Dramas; Chapter 5 For Unborn Children, Myrtle Smith Livingston; Chapter 6 The Purple Flower, Marita Bonner; Chapter 7 A Medal for Willie, William Branch; Chapter 8 Take a Giant Step, Louis Peterson; Chapter 9 Strictly Matrimony, Errol Hill; Chapter 10 A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry; Chapter 11 The Amen Corner, James Baldwin; Chapter 12 Morning, Noon, and Night, Ted Shine; Chapter 13 The Tumult and the Shouting, Thomas D. PawleyIII; Chapter 14 Who's Got His Own, Ron Milner; Chapter 15 Paper Dolls, Elaine Jackson; Chapter 16 Brown Silk and Magenta Sunsets, P. J. Gibson; Part 3 Histories; Chapter 17 Don't You Want to Be Free?, Langston Hughes; Chapter 18 In Splendid Error, William Branch; Chapter 19 To Be Young, Gifted, and Black, Robert Nemiroff; Chapter 20 Roads of the Mountaintop, Ron Milner; Chapter 21 The Meeting, Jeff Stetson;