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ix Preface Over the past two centuries several dozen black women have improved the newspaper business, but very few of their accomplishments reside in monographs. This book is a step toward rectifying their overlooked situation. It examines the historic life of Mildred Dee Brown, cofounder, owner, publisher, and editor of the Omaha Star newspaper, while telling the story of her times. Through the use of more than 150 oral histories, black weeklies and a few dailies, and documents from city, state, and federal levels of government, this book builds on and contributes to previous studies of African American and women’s history . Brown’s strong family background; deliberate involvement with the black community in Omaha, Nebraska; usage of the politics of respectability; knowledge through practical application and formal education; community collective activism; racial solidarity; and ability to change strategies ensured her status and her newspaper’s longevity in the city’s black enclave. During Brown’s fifty-one-year tenure with the Omaha Star, she successfully challenged racial discrimination, unfair employment practices, restrictive housing covenants, the segregated public school system, and a freeway dividing the minority neighborhood . The Near North Side’s matriarch, with her trademark white carnation corsage, was an iconic leader, and her legacy, the Omaha Star, continues as a source of racial uplift for Omaha’s black community. ...

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