Shetterly, Aran / Morningside: The 1979 Greensboro Massacre and the Struggle for an American City's Soul

Aran Shetterly is a writer, editor, and narrative historian. Aran holds a BA in literature from Harvard College, and an MA in American Studies. He currently lives in Charlottesville, Virginia, with his son and wife, the New York Times bestselling author Margot Lee Shetterly.

On November 3, 1979, as activist Nelson Johnson assembled people for a march adjacent to Morningside Homes in Greensboro, North Carolina, gunshots rang out. A caravan of Klansmen and Neo-Nazis sped from the scene, leaving behind five dead. This gripping true crime story, known as the "Greensboro Massacre," the event and its aftermath encapsulate the racial conflict, economic anxiety, clash of ideologies, and toxic mix of corruption and conspiracy that roiled American democracy then--and threaten it today.

In 88 seconds, one Southern city shattered over irreconcilable visions of America's past and future. When the shooters are acquitted in the courts, Reverend Johnson, his wife Joyce, and their allies, at odds with the police and the Greensboro establishment, sought alternative forms of justice in a powerful story of the ongoing fight for Civil Rights. As the Johnsons rebuilt their lives after 1979, they found inspiration in Nelson Mandela's post-apartheid Truth and Reconciliation Commission and Martin Luther King Jr's concept of Beloved Community and insist that only by facing history's hardest truths can healing come to the city they refuse to give up on.

This intimate, deeply researched, and heart-stopping account draws upon survivor interviews, court documents, and the files from one of the largest investigations in FBI history. The persistent mysteries of the case touch deep cultural insecurities and contradictions about race and class in Southern history. A quintessentially American story, Morningside explores the courage required to make change and the evolving pursuit of a more inclusive and equal future.

This definitive account of the Greensboro Massacre explores the courage required to make change.

9780062858214

Amistad Press

October 2024

Hardcover

Shetterly, Aran / Morningside: The 1979 Greensboro Massacre and the Struggle for an American City's Soul