Entrenched in poverty and marginalized, a mother’s love is all that shielded him from the expected outcomes of a poor black boy in America. The Deeper the Roots relays the lived experiences of former Stockton, Calif. mayor Michael Tubbs.

Tubbs offers readers an inspirational memoir, filled with gripping testimonies and a courageous fight against the status quo. From the impoverished neighborhood of south Stockton to Stanford University and becoming the youngest mayor of a major American city, he embodies perseverance.

He depicts his strict and sheltered upbringing by a single mother, lovingly referred to as “she-daddy”. His aunt and grandmother stood beside his mother forming a matriarchal circle, enveloping Tubbs in abundant love and support throughout his life.

“Grace and love of fierce women were the nutrients I needed to grow in the soil I was planted in: Stockton, California,” Tubbs wrote.

Though Tubbs excelled in school, he expressed that he was at constant odds with his teachers. So much so, that by his senior year he made a formal complaint with the local NAACP regarding racism and discrimination against his biology teacher. 

After Tubbs completed high school, he worked at a local school in which he was able to teach eighth-grade students. He found his deepest connections amongst the “bad” students. This opportunity allowed him to embody the type of pedagogy that he felt best connected him to his students.

“My lessons came not from the curriculum, but from the curriculum of our shared experiences,” he wrote.

Tubbs was developing a passion for giving back to his community, affording young people with limited resources an opportunity to materialize in a society pivoted against them.

Following several setbacks in his admissions process, Tubbs was accepted into Stanford.

Tubbs experiences at Stanford would foretell a future of political drive and service. During his first year, he recalls challenging professors and other students’ perspectives, and demanding fair policing practices from the Palo Alto City Council.

The Black Community Services Center at Stanford selected Tubbs as “Freshman of the Year,” an achievement validating his efforts in leadership.

He continued his pursuit toward aiding the disenfranchised youth in his community forming a group at the University of Pacific located in Stockton. He afforded “high-risk” youth the opportunity to learn about the opportunities available to them from people who “looked like them”.

With Tubbs’ forward progression seemingly unwavering, his senior year was met with several unforeseen obstacles. The murder of his cousin Donnell and the Rhodes Scholarship rejecting him would lead him to one place in his mind: Stockton, Calif.

He made up his mind; he would run for city council of his hometown. Through rigorous campaigning and a sizable financial contribution and endorsement from Oprah Winfrey; Tubbs won the race.

In 2012, Tubbs graduated from Stanford receiving the Lloyd W. Dinkelspiel Award, “the highest honor given to a graduating senior.”

As a newly elected council member, Tubbs embarked on a mission to save his city from rampant violence and bankruptcy. Meeting with city council members, the police chief, leaders in the community, and business owners became the norm. However, an untimely mistake would serve as a learning lesson early in his career.

In October 2014, Tubbs was arrested and charged with driving under the influence. He allowed this incident to serve as a learning lesson, and through much support from his community, he continued his pursuit toward recovering his city.

“It was humbling for me to see how one mistake made in a split second could endanger everything I’d worked for. We’re all just one bad choice away from ruin,” Tubbs wrote.

Despite Tubbs’ recent blunder, he was undeterred from announcing a run for mayor. He garnered the support from then-President Barack Obama, and in 2016, won his mayoral campaign by an overwhelming margin of 70 percent.

“At twenty-six years old, four years out of college, eight years out of high school, I was the youngest person in the United States to be elected mayor of a city with a population of more than 100,000. And I was Stockton’s first Black mayor,” Tubbs wrote.

Tubbs’ journey as mayor proved to be difficult. Faced with complex issues surrounding poverty and violence, Tubbs launched Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration Project (SEED) and implemented Operation Ceasefire in an attempt to mitigate gun violence. The mayor also faced intense scrutiny of both his public and private lives.

His partner, Anna, gave birth to his first child in 2019 and Tubbs’ reflected on the society in which he was raising his son.

“Although my son is born into a level of privilege I could not have dreamed about as a child, he is still a Black person in America, and I am under no illusion about the obstacle he will have to face,” he wrote.

The Deeper the Roots serves as a testimony of a Black man defeating the odds set against him. Tubbs delivers abundant counsel and motivation to those who share his struggle as well as those who did not. He exemplifies the results of hard work and unwavering dedication in service of others.