A Foot in Each World

Book excerpt: The works on the following pages were selected as a sample of Leanita McClain's work at its best. We categorized her writings into her most often expressed areas of interest and arranged her columns chronologically to make it easier to observe changes in her development as a young columnist and to follow such historical events as the continuing factional fights in Chicago's city council. Their value is more than historical. McClain was concerned with more than the maneuverings of a few local political players. Her accounts focus on the nature of power and how prejudice can be used in the fight to get it or keep it.