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This racism-tackling travel guide inspired an award-winning film

12 February 2019

Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali in 鈥楪reen Book鈥� (Photo: Universal/Dreamworks SKG)

The film Green Book is making waves this film awards season: several Golden Globe wins; a Best Supporting Actor BAFTA for Mahershala Ali; five Oscar nominations.

The film is based on the true story of African-American pianist Dr Don Shirley, who hired Italian-American Tony Vallelonga – aka Tony Lip – as his driver on a music tour of southern American states in the early 1960s.

The titular Green Book was a real publication alerting African-American motorists to the hotels, B&Bs and hostels that would accept their custom during the time of segregation.

Good Morning Scotland spoke to Candace Allen, a prominent American author and political activist, about the history of the Green Book and the importance of its impact at the time.

The Real Green Book

How a guide for African American travellers became a symbol of segregated America.

An early precursor to the Green Book only helped negotiate the state of New York.

In 1936, however, postal worker Victor Green realised there was a market for an extended guide for African-American motorists throughout the segregated American states.

Candace Allen described Green as “very circumspect in the way he put the information in the book.

“[He] would write ‘These places will welcome you’ instead of ‘do not put your black behind in this area or you are in trouble’.

“This measured language was considered useful for the government: it was a mutually advantageous situation, except for the fact that it was necessary.”

The Green Book was published annually from 1936 until 1966 and extended from New York down into the southern and mid-western states where legal segregation still existed.