World War I to the 1970s marked the decades-long migration of African-American citizens from the South to the North and West, in search of a better life. Wilkerson tells the story of this exodus of almost six million people that changed the face of America, through the lives of three unique individuals and their families. Interviewing more than a thousand people, and gaining access to new data and official records, Wilkerson creates a vivid and dramatic account of how these American journeys unfolded, altering our cities, our country, and ourselves.