Michael Eric Dyson and Marc Favreau, co-authors of Unequal: A Story of America, team up again to bring young readers accessible, comprehensive, and invaluable information about the American political system. In this collaboration, the authors focus on the history and importance of voting in the United States.
Dyson and Favreau discard the traditional history books and reveal many of the discriminatory reasons behind voting constructs like the Electoral College ("to block the will of the people"), property or identification requirements, and literacy tests (questions "intentionally designed to stump the test takers"). The authors show how voting deterrents have existed throughout the evolution of U.S. democracy, and when those in positions of power feel threatened by certain groups, they work to prevent those groups from casting ballots. No matter how often anti-democratic efforts have arisen, though, individuals have fought--and sometimes died--for suffrage. Readers learn about people such as Robert Smalls, who became a congressman for the district where he was born enslaved, and Zitkála-Šá, who fought for the rights of Native Americans in the early 20th century. Dyson and Favreau emphasize that "the threats to our democracy are as dire as ever, but... change is possible, one brave person at a time" and they offer suggestions for how readers can be actively involved in elections, even if they aren't old enough to vote yet.
Represent is exceptionally well researched, compelling, and honest. The target audience is teenagers, but readers of all ages will benefit from picking up this stellar resource. --Jen Forbus, freelancer