Parents' Guide to

Streetcar to Justice: How Elizabeth Jennings Won the Right to Ride in New York

By Lucinda Dyer, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 10+

Inspiring story of resisting segregation in 1850s New York.

Book Amy Hill Hearth History 2018
Streetcar to Justice: How Elizabeth Jennings Won the Right to Ride in New York Poster Image

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What's the Story?

STREETCAR TO JUSTICE tells the story of Elizabeth Jennings, a young black schoolteacher in 1850s New York City. At that time, New York had segregated schools, theaters, and public transportation. Black New Yorkers could only ride on "white" streetcars if the passengers didn't object or they rode hanging on the outside of the car. One evening in 1854, late for choir practice at her church, Elizabeth decided that instead of waiting for a "colored" streetcar, she would take the first one that arrived. She was pushed off the car by a conductor and, after she tried to board a second time, by a policeman. Elizabeth and her family were part of a small, well-educated black community in New York, and they and their friends (including Frederick Douglass) decided to "pursue justice" and sue the streetcar company, conductor, and driver of the horses for damages. She was represented in court by a 24-year-old newly minted lawyer, Chester A. Arthur, who would go on to become the 21st president of the United States. Jennings won her case and was awarded $225 in damages. Her victory led to the integration of New York's streetcars, railroads, steamboats, and ferries.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: Not yet rated
Kids say: Not yet rated

This engaging and inspirational true story uses a wealth of archival photos and drawings to visually bring to life an almost forgotten heroine in civil rights history. While Elizabeth Jennings' story is sure to capture the interest of readers, the sheer amount and variety of supplementary information in Streetcar to Justice could be daunting to young readers who aren't history buffs. The sidebars and short chapters cover a huge amount of historical territory and run the gamut from the native Lenni-Lenape people to Civil War Draft Riots, Horace Greeley, Rosa Parks, and Chester A. Arthur's "creepy" summer home.

There's a bibliography, but it's surprising that many of the books listed are for adult readers or are described as "academic" or "scholarly" works. A list on the Suggested Reading page offers four books appropriate for young readers.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about what Streetcar to Justice taught them about segregation in 1850s New York. Were you surprised at how much prejudice there was against black families living in a big northern city?

  • If you were a white passenger on that streetcar, would you have spoken up and asked your fellow passengers to let Elizabeth be seated? What would you have said?

  • How do you think the story would have changed if Elizabeth hadn't come from a family with money and powerful friends within New York's black community?

Book Details

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