Pulitzer Winning Historian MARCIA CHATELAIN, Author of HOW BRIGHT THE PATH GROWS

Description

Join us on Wednesday, October 14, 2026, at 7 PM to hear Pulitzer Winning historian, University of Pennsylvania Professor MARCIA CHATELAIN, discuss her exciting new book, HOW BRIGHT THE PATH GROWS: The Untold Story of the Women Who Made the March on Washington. She will be in conversation with West Chester University Associate Professor of Social Work, DR. EBONNIE L. VAZQUEZ.

This event is FREE and open to the public. RSVP today or preorder a SIGNED book for VIP Reserved Seating.

Part of our America’s 250th Literary Celebrations Series, and our Fall 2026 Authors’ Week.

ABOUT THE BOOK

From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Franchise comes the untold story of the pioneering Black women artists and activists who were seen, but barely heard, at the 1963 March on Washington

There is no shortage of footage immortalizing the men who spoke at the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, when 250,000 Americans gathered beneath the Lincoln Memorial to call for an end to segregation. There were reverends and rabbis, activists and Rat-Pack icons—and of course the day’s headliner, whose prophetic dream of a post-Jim Crow world has forever defined the Civil Rights Movement. But there is no “class photo” of the Black women who helped organize the march, performed on its main stage, or were honored during its Tribute to Negro Women Fighters for Freedom.

In How Bright the Path Grows, Marcia Chatelain weaves a gleaming group portrait of these singular women. Among this cohort were several household names: vaudeville icon Josephine Baker, civil rights activist Rosa Parks, gospel legend Mahalia Jackson, and Daisy Bates, champion of the Little Rock Nine. But many were relative unknowns, including Eva Jessye, the choir director who designed the day’s musical program; and Anna Hedgeman, the coordinator who pushed in the eleventh hour for a tribute to Black women’s work.

How Bright the Path Grows is a scintillating group biography, rendering the lives of thirteen Black women visionaries—some famous, others soon to be—in novelistic detail and like never seen before.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

MARCIA CHATELAIN is a Professor of Africana Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. She is the author of South Side Girls (Duke University Press, 2015) and Franchise (Liveright, 2020), which won the 2021 Pulitzer Prize in History, the James Beard Foundation Book Award, the Hagley Medal for Business History, and the Lawrence Levine Award from the Organization of American Historians. An active public speaker and educational consultant, Chatelain has received awards and honors from the Ford Foundation, the American Association of University Women, and the German Marshall Fund of the United States.

ABOUT THE INTERVIEWER

DR. EBONNIE L. VAZQUEZ, affectionately known as Dr. Ebonnie, graduated from Coatesville Area Senior High School in 1991. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science from Cheyney State University. Dr. Ebonnie then received her Master of Social Work, graduating Summa Cum Laude, from the University of Pittsburgh. Finally, she completed her Ph.D. in Psychology with Magna Cum Laude honors from Walden University.

Ebonnie is an Associate Professor of Social Work at West Chester University and serves as the faculty advisor for the campus's Association of Black Social Workers. She is also the CEO of Sistah Sircle, LLC, a nonprofit organization that provides mentoring, counseling, and social support to single parents in the Harrisburg area. Ebonnie is a published author and motivational speaker. Additionally, she works as a moderator and co-facilitator for Insight Resources, LLC, where she addresses issues of racism and inequality through training and group facilitation.

Ebonnie is an active member of the Council of Social Work Educators, where she serves as the Chair of the African Diaspora track. She is also on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Social Work and Welfare Policy. In addition, Ebonnie is affiliated with several organizations, including the Association of Black Social Workers, the National Coalition of 100 Black Women (Harrisburg Chapter), and she is a charter member of the National Council of Negro Women (Harrisburg Chapter). Furthermore, she is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Epsilon Sigma Omega Chapter, and she has previously served as a board member of FLOW. Ebonnie is also a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

Ebonnie currently resides in Harrisburg with her husband, Francisco Javier Vazquez, and their daughter, Essence.

Date & Time

Wed, Oct 14, 2026 7:00 PM

Venue Details

Midtown Scholar Bookstore-Cafe

1302 North 3rd Street
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17102

Midtown Scholar Bookstore-Cafe