A Life on the Run: Seeking and Safeguarding Social Justice. This item is unavailable.A Life on the Run: Seeking and Safeguarding Social Justice

Dr. John Telford pulls no punches telling his often scandalous, sometimes humorous, yet poignant and inspiring life story--which Michigan state senator Hansen Clarke calls "Unadulterated dynamite!" and a former ACLU national legal director calls "A triumphant tale of racing, rebellion, and raw courage."

Dr. John Telford has long been called a lightning rod for controversy. He retired in 1991 as deputy superintendent of Schools in 98 percent white Rochester, Michigan, where skinheads riddled his house with midnight gunfire for hiring black administrators. After retiring, he became an executive director in the Detroit Public Schools, where he clashed with inept top administrators. He served most recently as the superintendent of the Madison District Schools and was fired for recruiting hundreds of Detroit students against the wishes of white residents. Undefeated at 400 meters in Europe as a world-ranked sprinter, Dr. Telford coached champions and authored a noted book on the quarter mile--The Longest Dash. In 1978, he was inducted into the Wayne State University Athletic Hall of Fame. He has written newspaper columns, hosted radio shows, and directd human-rights agencies. A former director of the innovative and controversial Division of Basic Education at Macomb Community College and a published poet, he also taught at Wayne State and Oakland universities.