The Westside Slugger

Author : John L. Smith
Publisher : University of Nevada Press
ISBN 13 : 1948908042
Total Pages : 427 pages
Book Rating : 4.47/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book The Westside Slugger written by John L. Smith and published by University of Nevada Press. This book was released on 2019-01-07 with total page 427 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Westside Slugger is the powerful story of civil rights in Las Vegas and Nevada through the eyes and experience of Joe Neal, a history-making state lawmaker in Nevada. Neal rose from humble beginnings in Mound, Louisiana, during the Great Depression to become the first African American to serve in the Nevada State Senate. Filled with an intense desire for education, he joined the United States Air Force and later graduated from Southern University—studying political science and the law at a time of great upheaval in the racial status quo. As part of a group of courageous men, Neal joined a Department of Justice effort to register the first black voters in Madison Parish. When Neal moved to southern Nevada in 1963 he found the Silver State to be every bit as discriminatory as his former Louisiana home. As Neal climbed through the political ranks, he used his position in the state senate to speak on behalf of the powerless for more than thirty years. He took on an array of powerful opponents ranging from the Clark County sheriff to the governor of the state, as well as Nevada’s political kingmakers and casino titans. He didn’t always succeed—he lost two runs for governor—but he never stopped fighting. His successes included improved rights for convicted felons and greater services for public education, mental health, and the state’s libraries. He also played an integral role in improving hotel fire safety in the wake of the deadly MGM Grand fire and preserving the pristine waters of Lake Tahoe, which brought him national attention. Neal lived a life that personified what is right, just, and fair. Pushing through racial and civil rights hurdles and becoming a lifelong advocate for social justice, his dedication and determination are powerful reminders to always fight the good fight and never stop swinging.

Author : James P. Kraft
Publisher : JHU Press
ISBN 13 : 142144058X
Total Pages : 271 pages
Book Rating : 4.83/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Havoc and Reform written by James P. Kraft and published by JHU Press. This book was released on 2021-03-02 with total page 271 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How disasters—that have wrecked work sites throughout American history, in all parts of the nation and all sectors of the economy—have also inspired policy reform. Workplace disasters have wreaked havoc on countless American workers and their families. They have resulted in widespread death and disability as well as the loss of property and savings. These tragic events have also inspired safety reforms that reshaped labor conditions in ways that partially compensated for death, suffering, and social dislocation. In Havoc and Reform, James P. Kraft encourages readers to think about such disastrous events in new ways. Placing the problem of workplace safety in historical context, Kraft focuses on five catastrophes that shocked the nation in the half century after World War II, a time when service-oriented industries became the nation's leading engines of job growth. Looking to growing areas of economic life in the Western Sunbelt, Kraft touches on the 1947 explosion of the Texas City Monsanto Chemical Company plant, the 1956 airliner collision over the Grand Canyon, the hospital collapses following the 1971 San Fernando earthquake, the 1980 fire at the Las Vegas MGM Grand, and the 1995 bombing of the Oklahoma City Federal Building. These incidents destroyed places of employment that seemed safe and affected a relatively wide range of working people, including highly trained, salaried professionals and blue- and white-collar groups. And each took a toll on the general public, increasing fears that anyone could be in danger of being killed or injured and putting pressure on public officials to prevent similar tragedies in the future. As Kraft considers how these tragedies transformed individual lives and specific work environments, he describes how employees, employers, and public leaders reacted to each event. Presented chronologically, his studies offer a unique and sobering outlook on the rise of a now vital and integral part of the national economy. They also underscore the ubiquity and persistence of workplace disasters in American history while building on and challenging literature about the impact of World War II in the American West. Within a broader frame, they speak to the double-edged nature of modern life.

Author : Ronald M. James
Publisher : University of Nevada Press
ISBN 13 : 1647791170
Total Pages : 311 pages
Book Rating : 4.79/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Monumental Lies written by Ronald M. James and published by University of Nevada Press. This book was released on 2023-09-19 with total page 311 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A playful embrace of tall tales and exaggeration, Monumental Lies explores the evolution of folklore in the Wild West. Monumental Lies: Early Nevada Folklore of the Wild West invites readers to explore how legends and traditions emerged during the first decades following the “Rush to Washoe,” which transformed the Nevada Territory after in 1859. During this Wild West period, there was widespread celebration of deceit, manifesting in tall tales, burlesque lies, practical jokes, and journalistic hoaxes. Humor was central, and practitioners easily found themselves scorned if they failed to be adequately funny. The tens of thousands of people who came to the West, attracted by gold and silver mining, brought distinct cultural legacies. The interaction of diverse perspectives, even while new stories and traditions coalesced, was a complex process. Author Ronald M. James addresses how the fluidity of the region affected new expressions of folklore as they took root. The wildly popular Mark Twain is often a go-to source for collections of early tall tales of this region, but his interaction with local traditions was specific and narrow. More importantly, William Wright—publishing as Dan De Quille—arose as a key collector of legends, a counterpart of early European folklorists. With a bedrock understanding of what unfolded in the nineteenth century, James considers how these early stories helped shaped the culture of the Wild West.

Author : John L. Smith
Publisher : University of Nevada Press
ISBN 13 : 1948908913
Total Pages : 257 pages
Book Rating : 4.17/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Saints, Sinners, and Sovereign Citizens written by John L. Smith and published by University of Nevada Press. This book was released on 2021-03-18 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Listed as one of the Reno News & Review's "New Books from Nevada Authors," December 29, 2021 The grazing rights battle between Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy and the federal government, resulting in a tense, armed standoff between Bundy’s supporters and federal law enforcement officers, garnered international media attention in 2014. Saints, Sinners, and Sovereign Citizens places the Bundy conflict into the larger context of the Sagebrush Rebellion and the long struggle over the use of federal public lands in the American West. Author John L. Smith skillfully captures the drama of the Bundy legal tangle amid the current political climate. Although no shots were fired during the standoff itself, just weeks later self-proclaimed Bundy supporters murdered two Las Vegas police officers and a civilian. In Eastern Oregon, other Bundy supporters occupied the federal offices of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, and one of them died in a hail of bullets. While examining the complex history of federal public land policies, Smith exposes both sides of this story. He shows that there are passionate true believers on opposite sides of the insurrection, along with government agents and politicians in Washington complicit in efforts to control public lands for their wealthy allies and campaign contributors. With the promise of billions of dollars in natural resource profits and vast tracts of environmentally sensitive lands hanging in the balance, the West’s latest range war is the most important in the nation’s history. This masterful exposé raises serious questions about the fate of America’s public lands and the vehement arguments that are framing the debate from all sides.

Author : Charles Weller
Publisher : University of Nevada Press
ISBN 13 : 1647791472
Total Pages : 447 pages
Book Rating : 4.76/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book World War II and Nevada written by Charles Weller and published by University of Nevada Press. This book was released on 2024-05-28 with total page 447 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: World War II and Nevada is an in-depth examination of the state’s role in the war. Nevada’s geographic location, land, sky, mineral resources, and the sacrifices of its people were crucial to victory—and transformed the state. The war brought the first significant development of the gaming industry; the introduction of a huge, permanent military presence; the diversification of its population; and a shift in political and economic power within the region. Nevada’s previously unexamined role in the internment of Japanese Americans is explored, and so too is the role of women and minority groups in support of the war. The book concludes with a comprehensive list of those killed, wounded, or made prisoners of war during the conflict. Weller provides the most thorough analysis of Nevada’s war effort to date and historians will find the book a valuable addition to their World War II history collections.

Author : Jean E. Rhodes
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.54/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Becoming Manny written by Jean E. Rhodes and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Author : Fred E Woods
Publisher : University of Nevada Press
ISBN 13 : 1647790727
Total Pages : 271 pages
Book Rating : 4.21/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Bright Lights in the Desert written by Fred E Woods and published by University of Nevada Press. This book was released on 2023-02-14 with total page 271 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Bright Lights in the Desert explores the history of how members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Las Vegas have improved the regions’ neighborhoods, inspired educational institutions, brought integrity to the marketplace, and provided wholesome entertainment and cultural refinement. The LDS influence has helped shape the metropolitan city because of its members’ focus on family values and community service. Woods discusses how, through their beliefs and work ethics, they have impacted the growth of the area from the time of their first efforts to establish a mission in 1855 through the present day. Bright Lights in the Desert reveals Las Vegas as more than just a tourist destination and shows the LDS community’s commitment to making it a place of deep religious faith and devotion to family.

Author : Michael W. Bowers
Publisher : University of Nevada Press
ISBN 13 : 1647790271
Total Pages : 278 pages
Book Rating : 4.71/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book The Sagebrush State, 6th Edition written by Michael W. Bowers and published by University of Nevada Press. This book was released on 2021-07-29 with total page 278 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Nevada’s politics are in large measure the result of its turbulent history and harsh environment. Michael W. Bowers’s concise volume explains the dynamics of the state’s political formation process, which is strikingly unique among the fifty states. Even today, Nevada is unlike the other states in its politics and culture: economically right, yet libertarian and home to widespread gaming and a 24/7 industry. It has a high percentage of federally owned lands and one of the highest rates of urbanism in the United States, yet is often dominated by rural legislators. This comprehensive and insightful explanation discusses how Nevada’s history has shaped its political culture, and how its government operates today. The Sagebrush State serves as a highly readable and accessible text for the study of Nevada’s political history and constitution, which is a graduation requirement at the state’s colleges and universities. The sixth edition is updated through 2020 and includes the latest changes in the selection process of municipal court judges in the state, the resurgence of the Democrats after their losses in 2016, and the full text of the state constitution with extensive annotations of all amendments to the original 1864 document. It also examines the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting economic downturn on the state’s budget.

Author :
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 502 pages
Book Rating : 4.53/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Mines and Minerals written by and published by . This book was released on 1906 with total page 502 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Author :
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 606 pages
Book Rating : 4.91/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Mining Herald and Colliery Engineer written by and published by . This book was released on 1907 with total page 606 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: