"In October 1919, a group of black sharecroppers met at a church in an Arkansas village to organize a union. Bullets rained down on the meeting from outside. Many were killed by a white mob, and others were rounded up and arrested. Twelve of the sharecroppers were hastily tried and sentenced to death. Scipio Africanus Jones, a self-taught lawyer who'd been born enslaved answered the call and represented the twelve-but could he save the men's lives and set them free? Through their in-depth research and consultation with legal experts, noted nonfiction authors Sandra Neil Wallace and Rich Wallace carefully examine the complex proceedings and offer a riveting and clear account of this landmark civil rights case"-- Provided by publisher.