In The Shadow Of Statues

(Paperback)

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When Mitch Landrieu addressed the people of New Orleans in May 2017 about his decision to take down four Confederate monuments, including the statue of Robert E. Lee, he struck a nerve nationally, and his speech has now been heard or seen by millions across the country. In his first book, Mayor Landrieu discusses his personal journey on race as well as the path he took to making the decision to remove the monuments, tackles the broader history of slavery, race and institutional inequities that still bedevil America, and traces his personal relationship to this history.

Reviews

One of Time magazine'sBest Memoirs of 2018
Featured inNewsweek's "50 Coolest Books to Read This Summer"
Included in Esquire's "Best Nonfiction Books of 2018"

[Mitch Landrieu] hasdone something, in his speech and his book, that other politicians should emulate. Hes tried to reckon with Americas sins while offering an optimistic, big-hearted and deeply patriotic defense of cosmopolitanism as the source of American greatness.The New York Times

[A] thought-provoking piece of political writing...Uncomfortable as it might be to think of our countrys history...we have to do so, if we want to live within the truth. Landrieu has shown the way.The Washington Post

"Landrieu is an example of a politician who acknowledges that Americas past isnt pretty, but hes also working to shift a damaged culture that he feels has been ignored for too long. This is an inspiring tale that is both political and personal urging readers to understand the countrys past and the work that is needed to change the present."Time

"[A] compelling reconsideration of what it means to be a Southerner in contemporary America."Esquire.com

"A powerful manifesto."Newsweek

"A powerful, welcome manifesto in the cause of a new and better Southand a 'better America.'"Kirkus Reviews

"[A] timely message of racial reconciliation."National Journal

"Mitch Landrieu takes us on an extraordinarily powerful journey that is both political and personal. With a balance of humility and conviction, he recounts his path to a more profound understanding of racial justice and explains how this journey led him to remove the Confederate monuments in New Orleans. Its an important book for everyone in America to read, because it shows how intellectual honesty can lead to moral clarity." Walter Isaacson,#1 New York Times bestselling author ofLeonardo Da Vinci and Steve Jobs


Praise for Mitch Landrieu and his May 2017 speech:

The masterpiece we needed at the moment we needed it The New York Times

A remarkably compelling speech about race in America...stunningly eloquent CNN

Evocative POLITICO Magazine

Courageous, controversial and frankly long overdue US News & World Report

Eloquence, power and humility Chicago Tribune

Author Bio

Mitch Landrieu is the mayor of New Orleans. He was elected in 2010 and is now completing his second four-year term. A Democrat, Landrieu served as lieutenant governor of Louisiana from 2004 to 2010. He is also president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors. His father, Moon Landrieu, was mayor of New Orleans from 1970 to 1978 and a leading civil rights pioneer.