Breaking the Color Barrier The U.S. Naval Academy's First Black Midshipmen and the Struggle for Racial Equality

"This richly researched and judiciously written study facilitates deeper comprehension of how institutional racism preserved white hegemony in the U.S. Navy until Midshipman Wesley Brown detonated its color barrier." - Darlene Clark Hine,author of A Shining Thread of Hope: The History of Black Women in America "Describes for the first time the difficulties Wesley Brown endured and the concerted effort by a & tight knot of Southern upperclassmen to oust him using racial epithets, ostracism, and demerits." (Washington Post) "This detailed story is one that has been long overdue in being told. Dr. Schneller has told it exceedingly well." (Proceedings/U.S. Naval Institute) "A marvelous book. Schneller takes what might first appear to be a fairly narrow topic and offers a sweeping, well-researched account which places the question of race at the Naval Academy in the context of the Navy and the nation." (International Journal of Maritime History) "Not only has [Schneller] given us his remarkable insight into one man's story of courage, perseverance and determination, but he has framed that dramatic experience within the larger narration of American race relations in the twentieth century. Anyone desiring a more complete understanding of African Americans' struggle to desegregate the armed forces will find this book indispensable." (Journal of American History)