ABSTRACT
Carl B. Stokes, the first African American mayor of Cleveland, Ohio, was one of the first black mayors of a major city. His election, along with that of Richard Hatcher of Gary, Indiana, which occurred in the same month, marked a watershed victory in the struggle for African American power and freedom. By filling this gap Leonard Moore's work Carl Stokes and the Rise of Black Political Power marks a signal contribution to the literature, and a valuable addition to the growing number of works devoted to analyzing black politics through the biographical lens of black mayors. Moore traces, effectively, Stokes' ascendance from liquor agent to mayor; outlining some of the larger social forces that impacted Cleveland in general and black Cleveland in particular. Once elected, Stokes' successes were attached to two different forces: federal aid to urban areas on the one hand, and white corporate interests on the other.
