RISING FROM THE RAILS: THE STORY OF THE PULLMAN PORTER explores the little-known history of the African American men hired to work on railroad sleeping cars beginning in the late 1860s. Serving wealthy, white passengers in the golden age of rail travel, the Pullman Porters carried labor organizing skills, civil rights ideals, and elements of black culture - such as jazz and blues - across the country. As trailblazers in the struggle for African American self-sufficiency, the Pullman Porters inspired future generations of independent black leaders, including their own future descendants.
