# I Saw Death Coming: A History of Terror and Survival in the War Against Reconstruction - Hardcover

by **Kidada E. Williams** (Author)

**"Powerful and deeply moving."--_Los Angeles Times_**

**From a groundbreaking scholar, a heart-wrenching reexamination of the struggle for survival in the Reconstruction-era South, and what it cost.**

The story of Reconstruction is often told from the perspective of the politicians, generals, and journalists whose accounts claim an outsized place in collective memory. But this pivotal era looked very different to African Americans in the South transitioning from bondage to freedom after 1865. They were besieged by a campaign of white supremacist violence that persisted through the 1880s and beyond. For too long, their lived experiences have been sidelined, impoverishing our understanding of the obstacles post-Civil War Black families faced, their inspiring determination to survive, and the physical and emotional scars they bore because of it.

In _I Saw Death Coming_, Kidada E. Williams offers a breakthrough account of the much-debated Reconstruction period, transporting readers into the daily existence of formerly enslaved people building hope-filled new lives. Drawing on overlooked sources and bold new readings of the archives, Williams offers a revelatory and, in some cases, minute-by-minute record of nighttime raids and Ku Klux Klan strikes. And she deploys cutting-edge scholarship on trauma to consider how the effects of these attacks would linger for decades--indeed, generations--to come.

For readers of Carol Anderson, Tiya Miles, and Clint Smith, _I Saw Death Coming_ is an indelible and essential book that speaks to some of the most pressing questions of our times.

### Author Biography

**Kidada E. Williams** is Associate Professor of History at Wayne State University. She is the author of _They Left Great Marks on Me_, coauthor of _Charleston Syllabus_, and creator of the podcast _Seizing Freedom_. Williams has been interviewed on NPR's _Morning Edition_ and _On Point_, and her essays have appeared in the _New York Times_, _Slate_, and multiple scholarly journals. She lives in Detroit

**Number of Pages:** 384

**Dimensions:** 1.31 x 9.59 x 6.38 IN

**Publication Date:** January 17, 2023

## Details

- **Price:** 30.0 USD
- **Vendor:** Books by splitShops
- **Type:** Books
- **Tags:** Books by splitShops, Shopify Collective

## Variants

| Variant | Price | Available |
|---------|-------|-----------|
| Default Title | 30.00 USD | In stock |

## Images

- I Saw Death Coming: A History of Terror and Survival in the War Against Reconstruction - Hardcover

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