Passing for Black: The Life and Careers of Mae Street Kidd
Mae Street Kidd's inspirational life story is quintessentially American. Kidd, born in 1904 in Millersburg, Kentucky, was raised by her black mother and stepfather, ignored, indeed never even acknowledged, by her white father, a wealthy landowner and neighbor. She could easily have passed for white, but proud of her African American heritage, she was more than willing to face the world as a black woman, a "double minority." The tall and savvy Kidd started working as an insurance agent right out of high school in a world dead set against working women of any hue and successful African Americans of either gender, and she went on to become not only an innovative businesswoman and civic leader but also a skilled politician. Kidd served in the Kentucky General Assembly for 17 years, overseeing the passage of important civil-rights-related legislation. Oral historian Hall has done a superb job of preserving the essence of Kidd's feisty and impressive personality and her vividly detailed reminiscences, presenting us with that rarest of beings, a genuine role model.Donna Seaman