This book is a first-person narrative that tells the little-known story of a couple who were deeply engaged during their 62 years of marriage in every major battle in the struggle for civil rights and labor rights in the second half of the twentieth century.
Mentored by labor unionist and civil rights activist A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin, the Hills worked as individuals and as a couple on voter registration drives, the 1963 March on Washington and the 1965 Selma to Montgomery March as well as countless campaigns to desegregate restaurants, public schools, housing and labor unions in the South and the North. They worked with John Lewis, Martin Luther King, Jr., and crossed paths with Malcom X and Presidents William Clinton and Barack Obama. As assistant to the president of the United Federation of Teachers, Velma successfully organized 10,000 NYC public school paraprofessionals.
A romance, a history and a call to action, Climbing the Rough Side of the Mountain is a much-needed road map to guide today’s new generation of activists working to build a more just America. Available on eBay, Target, Betterside Books, and other retailers.
