Color-Blind Justice

"In focusing on this largely forgotten activist and artist of Victorian America and his struggles to bring the United States into closer proximity to its ever-elusive ideals, Elliott undertook a task that was more daunting, for his subject pursued wildly different careers as a politician, a lawyer, and a novelist in pursuit of his goals. The author impressively succeeds in integrating these divergent strands into a coherent and illuminating whole."--Michael Thomas Smith, Reviews in American History "An excellent biography, by far the best scholarly treatment of it important subject."--Mark S. Weiner, American Historical Review "No one has completed a more thorough, penetrating study of Tourg'ee and his multiple legacies than Mark Elliott."--Jane Dailey, Civil War Book Review "Elliott's masterful biography...defies easy capsulization...It tells a story of a remarkable and talented man who dedicated much of his life to a noble, yet often lonely, struggle...And it places Tourgee in the context of the momentous events that shaped his life and ideas...[T]his extraordinary biography ends by leaving it to others to judge the meaning of Tourgee's life in our own times. There is little doubt that it can still tell us a great deal about the human condition."--Raleigh Daily News and Observer "Mark Elliott...has synthesized a wealth of material and crafted a superb study.... Elliot writes with gusto and is provocative in his analysis. Color-Blind Justice is certain to become an invaluable source on Tourg'ee and on race relations in the United States during the second half of the 19th century."--Richmond Times Dispatch "A seminal but nearly forgotten figure in the American Civil Rights movement receives his due in this richly detailed biography...Elliott goes a long way toward restoring Albion Tourg'ee's name to a prominent place on the list of American civil rights heroes."--Publishers Weekly "Through deep research, great sensitivity to the racial and social contexts of the late nineteenth century, and some eloquent writing, Elliott shows us a Tourg'ee who truly was a pioneer of the tradition of antiracism in its early years. The work is also an excellent on-the-ground biography of a carpetbaggers experience in Reconstruction North Carolina. Tourg'ee was a major literary, legal, and political figure and this book finally may bring his story to a larger readership. As a first book by a young scholar, it is impressive for its mature writing and creative research."--Avery O. Craven Award citation "Elliott's Color-Blind Justice is a fascinating study of a man and his principles against the rapidly changing background of the nineteenth century's second half."--Martin Hardeman, H-Net Reviews "A wonderful biography."--The Journal of Law and History Review