A California native, Mignette Patrick Dorsey is an author, teacher and former journalist. Her book, Speak Truth to Power, the Story of Charles Patrick, a Civil Rights Pioneer, won the Calvin Smith Book Award, as well as the Lone Star College System Published Writing Award. She began her journalism career as a staff reporter for Houston Community Newspapers, and later the Houston Post where she won the Aldo and Atrium awards for fashion feature stories. After the demise of the Post, she worked freelance and on contract for the Houston Chronicle. She left to enter the world of public relations as a city of Houston spokesperson, followed by a career as a high school Journalism and developmental Reading educator. She currently teaches writing courses at a Houston-area community college. Dorsey holds an M.A. and B.A. in English Literature from the University of Houston.
Book synopsis:
Speak Truth to Power, the Story of Charles Patrick, a Civil Rights Pioneer is the account of how a defiant black veteran, Charles Patrick, tackled corrupt powers in 1954 Birmingham, Alabama, unwittingly providing an early platform for the Civil Rights Movement that ensued. The incident, in which Patrick was mercilessly assaulted by two white policemen, sparked uncommon unity amongst white and black citizens, politicians and the press. In an unprecedented move, officials fired the two policemen involved. The book offers a fresh historical look into the inner-workings of civil rights attorneys as Patrick was represented by NAACP lawyers Peter A. Hall, Sr., and Orzell Billingsley, Jr. A three-minute video featuring an interview with 92-year-old Charles Patrick, who now lives in Houston, Texas, is available at: www.speaktruth2power.com.
Genre:
Civil Rights / Biography / American History
ISBN Number:
978-0-8173-5556-2
Author's Website:
speaktruth2power.com
