This book chronicles the successful struggle of Douglas Conner to escape poverty and to provide advancement not only for himself but also for impoverished and oppressed blacks in his home state of Mississippi. In this poignant autobiography Conner tells of having to overcome the code that taught that blackness and subordination were interchangeable, though he never accepted it. His goal of becoming a physician provided motivation for continued hope. When he later attended Alcorn State University and then traveled north to Connecticut and Detroit and still later when he attended the Army's first integrated classes during World War II, he began to realize that his dream was possible. In 1950 he achieved it when he graduated from Howard University as a medical doctor. Thereafter he established his practice in Starkville, Mississippi and devoted himself to improving life for countless people. He provided leadership in the state's Democratic party and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and was instrumental in leading many blacks to the voting booths and in battling for the desegregation of schools and businesses. In the foreword to this book Aaron Henry, Dr. Conner's friend of many years, provides insights into this black physician's importance and into their common goals during the civil rights movement. For all readers this book tells what it was like to be a black Mississippian during the Jim Crow era and in the time of desegregation. All can learn from it. The autobiography of a black doctor in white Mississippi during the Jim Crow era and the fierce struggle for civil rights Douglas L. Conner (1920-1998) was an African American physician in Starkville, Mississippi, and a civil rights activist. He is author (with John F. Marszalek) of A Black Physican's Story: Bringing Hope to Mississippi , published by University Press of Mississippi. John F. Marszalek is executive director of the Ulysses S. Grant Presidential Library and author of multiple books, including biographies of William T. Sherman, Henry W. Halleck, and George W. Murray. He is also coauthor (with David S. Nolan, Louie P. Gallo, and Frank J. Williams) of Hold On with a Bulldog Grip: A Short Study of Ulysses S. Grant and (with Douglas L. Conner) of A Black Physician’s Story: Bringing Hope to Mississippi , both published by University Press of Mississippi. Aaron Henry (1922-1997) was a Mississippi-born civil rights leader and politician. In addition to his civil rights work, he was Mississippi NAACP president and a leader of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party. He also served in the Mississippi House of Representatives from 1979 until 1996. He is author (with Constance Curry) of Aaron Henry: The Fire Ever Burning , published by University Press of Mississippi. Used Book in Good Condition