April 4, 1968: Martin Luther King, JR.'s Death and How It Changed America
Author: Michael Eric Dyson
On April 4, 1968, at 6:01 PM, while he was standing on a balcony at a Memphis hotel, Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot and fatally wounded. Only hours earlier King—the prophet for racial and economic justice in America—ended his final speech with the words, “I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight, that we as a people will get to the Promised Land.”
Acclaimed public intellectual and best-selling author Michael Eric Dyson uses the fortieth anniversary of King’s assassination as the occasion for a provocative and fresh examination of how King fought, and faced, his own death, and we should use his death and legacy. Dyson also uses this landmark anniversary as the starting point for a comprehensive reevaluation of the fate of Black America over the four decades that followed King’s death. Dyson ambitiously investigates the ways in which African-Americans have in fact made it to the Promised Land of which King spoke, while shining a bright light on the ways in which the nation has faltered in the quest for racial justice. He also probes the virtues and flaws of charismatic black leadership that has followed in King’s wake, from Jesse Jackson to Barack Obama.
Always engaging and inspiring, April 4, 1968 celebrates the prophetic leadership of Dr. King, and challenges America to renew its commitment to his deeply moral vision.
Thomas J. Davis - Library Journal
Commemorating the 40th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination, Dyson (sociology, Georgetown Univ.; I May Not Get There with You: The True Martin Luther King Jr.) further evaluates the civil rights martyr and his legacy. His previous work on King focused on King's hijacked radical legacy. Here, in his 16th book, he mainly focuses on how King's vision continues to influence how blacks measure the promise and fulfillment of the Christian and civic equality that he preached. Dyson shows how King's bold and charismatic prophecy left a daunting model for any aspiring black leader to live up to. Examining Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, and Barack Obama, Dyson probes the deep shadow in which these leaders operate as he reiterates the continued resonance of King's productive martyrdom and his call for transformative social justice and racial redemption. Thoughtful and provocative, this book brings to bear Dyson's characteristic challenge to both scholars and general readers to see black life in America as it is and to move forward to improve it-and America. Recommended for collections on black history or leadership, civil rights, social justice, or contemporary America.
Table of Contents:
Preface ixMoses: A Prophet's Death in Three Acts
(Act 1) Fighting Death 3
(Act 2) Talking Death 25
(Act 3) Facing Death 45
Promised Land, or Wilderness?
Report Card on Black America 79
The Black Family and Black Inequality 101
What Would Martin Do? Poverty, Prosperity, and the Performance of Blackness 119
Joshua: Charismatic Black Leadership in a Prophet's Shadow
A Messiah Measures Leadership 145
Heir Apparent 171
Last of a Dying Breed? 201
Black Kennedy 223
Afterword: Interview with Dr. King on His 80th Birthday 245
Acknowledgments 271
Bibliographical Notes 275
Index 283
Interesting textbook: Cultures and Organizations or Germs
The Constitution of the United States of America
Author: Applewood Books
The landmark legal document of the United States, the U.S. Constitution comprises the primary law of the Federal Governement. Signed by the members of the Consitutional Concention in Philadelphia on September 17, 1787, the Constitution outlines the powers and responsibilities of the three chief branches of the Federal Government, as well as the basic rights of the citizens of the United States. This beautiful gift edition contains the complete text of the United States Constitution, as well as all of its amendments. It is a treasure for Americans of all ages.
No comments:
Post a Comment