A burst of orange!

The integration of SC Clarendon County School District #3 in 1970 ended the high school at the all-Black Walker-Gamble School. Read about the history in my new book available now from Amazon. @asalh-bhm.bsky.social @rickyljones.bsky.social #blackhistory

Clarendon County, South Carolina was ground zero in the NAACP LDF fight for education equality. But there’s another little-known story from Clarendon County that depicts the sacrifice and dedication to black education equity. Check out my book available on Amazon.

Happy Juneteenth!

📣 You’re invited! Join ASALH and National Park Service for a conversation on the legacy of Black public high schools (1870–1970). Help preserve their history, share your story, and shape how these institutions are remembered. 🏫🖤

In honor and prayer. #Emmanuel9

Summer is a great time to read a book. #indieauthors

A great place to relax and read a book.

A relaxing walk on a Carolina beach.

Memorial Day is the official start of summer. Growing up as a child in New Zion, it was also time to plant vegetable gardens. Read my new blog post on the integral role of vegetable gardens in the life of African Americans in the south. #blackculture newzionstories.com/the-resurgen...

Enjoying the South Carolina beach this morning.

A book that tells the story of a school named for 2 Black farmers in New Zion, SC who sacrificed a portion of their land for the 1st public school in 1953 for Black children.1/1 @africanamerican365.bsky.social, @asalh-bhm.bsky.social, @africanarchives.bsky.social, @rfkhumanrights.bsky.social

Rainy spring morning brings forth new flowers in New Zion! #newzionstories, #springflowers

“Bright Gold and Blue” tells the story of the Walker-Gamble School, a public school for African American children in eastern Clarendon County. Get your copy from www.amazon.com. #blackhistory, #southcarolinahistory, #blackwriters

Congratulations to my brother, Coach JW Montgomery (second from left) for being a member of the East Clarendon High School Hall of Fame for football. #ClarendonCounty, #NewZion

Thank you Clarendon County Public Library for featuring me in the local author spotlight. www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0DH...

Swinging along beside the Crepe Myrtle!

@elienyc.bsky.social, Justice Correspondent for @thenation.com, wins the 2025 Hillman Prize for Opinion & Analysis Journalism for indispensable Supreme Court reporting.

A powerful analysis on the historical influence of white philanthropy and black education. #blackhistory, #africanamericaneducation

A seminal study on the history of education of blacks in the southern United States. #blackhistory, #africanamericanhistory, #historyofeducation

ContrabandCamp Correspondent @tiffanydcross.bsky.social talked to journalist, author & activist rokhayadiallo.bsky.social about living in a country with a racist, far-right, anti-immigrant movement built on economic anxiety, nationalism & white backlash... They also talked about living in America.

Coming fall 2025 “Living and Dreaming Down South. Memories of a Childhood in New Zion, South Carolina”. www.newzionstories.com #ClarendonCounty, #blackhistory, #blackculture

Eye candy today in Georgia. #springtime

Bright Gold and Blue book signing event at Walker-Gamble High School Alumni Association School Reunion. April 19, 2025. #blackhistory #clarendoncountyhistory #indieauthor

Beautiful scenery on my walk today!

So grateful to everyone who supported my book signing event for “Bright Gold and Blue. An Intimate History of the Walker-Gamble School, 1953-1970”. #indieauthors, #blackhistory, #africanamericaneducationhistory

Honored to be the keynote speaker for the Walker-Gamble High School Alumni Association Reunion event honoring 72 years of educational excellence. #blackhistory, #blackeducationhistory, #clarendoncounty

Gotta say, I struggle on some days to reconcile the fact that millions of Americans actually WANT to live in a country with viruses spreading freely, thousand of people getting kicked out of their jobs, billionaires feasting on the government & people being snatched off the street by secret police.

Written by indie author Diane M. Burnette, “Bright Gold and Blue” is the story of the Walker-Gamble School, a public school for African American children in eastern Clarendon County, South Carolina. Available on Amazon. #blackhistory #africanamericaneducation

Check out my new blog post: “The Southern Barbecue Pit: More than a Cooking Event.” #blackculture newzionstories.com/the-southern...

The history of the Walker-Gamble School is the story of the struggle for black education equality in the face of injustice.1/2 www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0DH...

Another of my favorite books is “The Warmth of Other Suns” (Vintage), by Isabel Wilkerson. Written in striking detail, Wilkerson does a masterful job in describing the Great Migration of 6 million Black people from WWI to 1970. #blackhistory #blackmigration #africanamericanhistory

“Freedoms Teacher” by Katherine Mellon Charron (UNC Press) is an excellent story on the life of Septima Clark, a native South Carolinian and leading figure in African American education history. #blackhistory #africanamericanhistory #civilrights #educationhistory

The long saga of school desegregation in the history of black education, was one catalyst for the right-wing push to dismantle the federal education bureaucracy. 1/1 www.joyannreid.com/p/the-daily-...

Read about the history of a public school for African American children in eastern Clarendon County South Carolina by Diane M. Burnette. Available on Amazon.com #blackhistory #africanamericanhistory

The New Zion Stories website is live! Books on African American education history & culture by Indie author Diane Burnette. www.newzionstories.com @africanarchives.bsky.social #blackhistory #indieauthors

During the period of de jure segregation high schools for African Americans were often considered to be community pearls. The schools were more than physical structures but they stood a beacon of hope and opportunity. newzionstories.com/community-pe...

My latest: you can't fear a government shutdown when the government is already shut down... www.joyannreid.com/p/the-daily-...

I am honored to serve as the keynote speaker for the WGHSAA,Inc Scholarship and Awards Banquet, April 19, 2025. Come out and support this prestigious event as we honor the legacy of Silas Walker and Charlie Gamble.

The New Zion Stories website is live! Books on African American education history & culture by Indie author Diane Burnette. www.newzionstories.com @africanarchives.bsky.social #blackhistory #indieauthors

Come visit the countryside in New Zion, South Carolina. #southcarolina

"I want to keep boycotting Amazon, but I also want to support indie authors. How do I do that?" Many indie authors have their books on Barnes & Noble & Kobo! There are also places like Smashwords & Campfire that are almost all indie books! Itchio now has a THRIVING LGBTQ Indie Book Scene.

I’m writing something new and I’m excited. I’m in my favourite phase which is the “before the writing” phase. Filling up a notebook with ideas, doing interviews and basically just staring out the window doing the thing that I got in trouble for in high school - “day dreaming”. This is the fun part.

I didn't write my first book until I was 31. I now have over 30 novels and dozens of comics in print. Do you know how old you will be by the time you write that book of your heart? The same age you would be if you didn't write it, but YOU WROTE A BOOK. It's never too late.

Over the next several weeks I will post some of my favorite books on African-American education history and culture. First up is Richard Kluger’s “Simple Justice”, a history of Brown v. Board of Education. #blackhistory #africanamericanwriters

I am honored to serve as the keynote speaker for the WGHSAA,Inc Scholarship and Awards Banquet, April 19, 2025. Come out and support this prestigious event as we honor the legacy of Silas Walker and Charlie Gamble.

Investigating a university because students protested for human rights and an end to a war that has killed 45,000 people including 10,000 plus children and counting is nasty work.

I'm gonna have this picture on my wall like old people have pictures of JFK, King and Obama on their walls.