A Black-majority city with a history of the most severe segregation and inequity, Richmond is still grappling with this legacy as it moves into the twenty-first century. Marvin Chiles now offers a unique take on Richmond’s racial politics since the civil rights era by demonstrating that the city’s current racial disparities in economic mobility, housing, and public education actually represent the unintended consequences of Richmond’s racial reconciliation measures. He deftly weaves municipal politics together with grassroots efforts, examining the work and legacies of Richmond’s Black leaders, from Henry Marsh on the city council in the 1960s to Mayor Levar Stoney, to highlight the urban revitalization and public history efforts meant to overcome racial divides after Jim Crow yet which ironically reinforced racial inequality across the city. Compellingly written, this project carries both local and broader regional significance for Richmonders, Virginians, southerners, and all Americans.

Timely! Richmond is at an inflection point, and this explains how we got where we are. The Courage to Change reimagines Richmond's history by thinking intently on how actual people shape and reimagine government - Julian Maxwell Hayter, University of Richmond, author of The Dream Is Lost: Voting Rights and the Politics of Race in Richmond, Virginia

Marvin Chiles tells a rich, humane, and powerful story of a city confronting profound change and persistent challenge. He does so with deep research and compelling characters stretching across generations. - Edward L. Ayers, University of Richmond, author of The Thin Light of Freedom: The Civil War and Emancipation in the Heart of America

Marvin T. Chiles is Assistant Professor of History at Old Dominion University.