April 4, 1968 : Martin Luther King Jr.'s death and how it changed America / Michael Eric Dyson.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Dyson, Michael Eric.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

King, Martin Luther, Jr., 1929-1968.

King, Martin Luther.

African Americans--Civil rights--History--20th century.

African Americans.

African Americans--Civil rights.

History.

African Americans--Civil rights--History--21st century.

African Americans--Social conditions--20th century.

African Americans--Social conditions--21st century.

Assassination.

African Americans--Social conditions.

United States--Race relations--History.

United States.

Race relations.

King, Martin Luther, Jr., 1929-1968--Assassination.

Physical Description:

xii, 290 pages ; 21 cm

Other Title:

Martin Luther King Jr.'s death and how it changed America

Place of Publication:

New York : Basic Books, [2008]

Summary:

No matter who killed him-a bigoted gunman, conspiring gangsters, or renegade government forces-Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life was an anxious and dramatic march to the grave. Of course, all humans are born to die. But King knew that in all likelihood he would go earlier and more violently than most. He exhausted himself uplifting his country and race, but hateful forces hounded him to his last breath.

King's ultimate sacrifice made America a better country. His dream has been richly explored, and exploited. His birthday is celebrated as a national holiday. But his challenge to America has frozen beneath an avalanche of amnesia. King's date of death shivers in frosty abandonment. It is clearly easier to salute a hero than face a martyr. That is especially true when his death reminds us of our demons and our unachieved potential.

Facing King may not be all bad. We may meet the man who already knew, and forgave, our wrongdoing. We may also see the leader who asks us to use his death to better our country. King used the unavoidable fact of death to argue for social change and measure our commitment to truth. There is a lot to be learned in how King feared and faced death, and fought it too. What we make of his death may determine what we make of his legacy and our future.

Contents:

Part 1 Moses: A Prophet's Death in Three Acts

1 (Act 1) Fighting Death 3

2 (Act 2) Talking Death 25

3 (Act 3) Facing Death 45

Part 2 Promised Land, or Wilderness?

4 Report Card on Black America 79

5 The Black Family and Black Inequality 101

6 What Would Martin Do? Poverty, Prosperity, and the Performance of Blackness 119

Part 3 Joshua: Charismatic Black Leadership in a Prophet's Shadow

7 A Messiah Measures Leadership 145

8 Heir Apparent 171

9 Last of a Dying Breed? 201

10 Black Kennedy 223

Afterword: Interview with Dr. King on His 80th Birthday 245.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780465002122

0465002129

OCLC:

191729801