Grif Stockley

Daisy Bates never fit the mold of the self-sacrificing black woman who patiently stayed in the back room feeding the mimeograph machine while the men planned the marches and commanded the headlines. As a female civil rights leader, Bates confounds the expectations of those of both races who prefer their heroines modest and saintlike - in other words, like her friend Rosa Parks.

Stockley uses a number of sources, including oral history interviews, archival and census records and state and local newspapers to illuminate the story of this often overlooked "Civil Rights Crusader" and her activism . . . it is a necessary read for scholars of civil rights, African American and gender history.
-- Chrisse Jones-Branch, The Journal of Southern History

A thought-provoking, well-written book. It fits comfortably into recent movement scholarship that examines the impact of gender and class issues on the black freedom struggle. The book will appeal to both students of the civil rights movement and general readers.
-- Cynthia Griggs Fleming, H-Net Reviews

Moving beyond the natural tendency to treat this iconic figure as a china doll whose flaws and frailties are off-limits, Stockley captures Bates' complexity and her full humanity, presenting his reader with a fascinating if believable character faced with almost unbelievable challenges and adversities.
-- Elizabeth Jacoway, author of Turn Away Thy Son

Arkansas Historical Association's Ragsdale Award, 2005, for "Best Book on Arkansas History"
Arkansas Library Association's Arkansania Award, 2007