Lights of the Spirit: Historical Portraits of Black Baha'is in North America, 1898-2000

This groundbreaking work uncovers a piece of religious history that until now has gone unwritten: the role played by Black people in the emergence of the Baha'i Faith in North America. Drawing on a wide range of sources including personal essays, letters, and journals, Lights of the Spirit offers a fascinating glimpse into the lives of some extraordinary individuals who devoted themselves to a common cause and made outstanding contributions toward building a unified society. Editors Gwendolyn Etter-Lewis and Richard Thomas bring to light the stories of a diverse group of people: lawyer Louis Gregory, poet Robert Hayden, jazz musician Dizzy Gillespie, Broadway actress Dorothy Champ, and Canadian singer Eddie Elliot, to name a few. Lights of the Spirit is an important resource for anyone interested in African-American or Baha'i history and the unique intersection of both.