The history of African Americans is explored in their writings, narratives, letters, editorials, speeches, lyrics, & folktales, from U.S. colonial times to today. Here is the most comprehensive collection of African-American writing to date and includes poetry, prose, speeches, songs, documents, and letters from the pre-Colonial era through today's best and most well-known writers. An anthology that anyone interested in the full scope of African-American history should not be without. The history of African-American life and thought presented in this anthology represents a far-reaching written and oral tradition, which is thought-provoking, inspiring, and impressive in its breadth. It includes poetry and prose by today's best and most well-known writers.