Excellent ... Offers fresh interpretations of key moments of activism during 1966 based on interviews and memoirs published over the past four decades. Without sacrificing historical rigor, he writes with the eye of a journalist and ear of a poet about the behind-the-scenes negotiations and inner-organizational strife among Civil Rights activists who realized the need to broaden the movement beyond the southern campaign for voting rights and desegregation ... A refreshing history.
The story moves across the nation and along cultural and political fronts, offering a fresh take ... In Whitaker’s narrative, Carmichael and his leadership provide a way into the complex history of the Black Power movement ... Whitaker also delves into the work of Huey Newton and Bobby Seale.
Riveting ... An essential history of events that deserve more attention and consideration. Whitaker’s striking insights offer a memorable glimpse of a key period in American history and the struggle for racial justice in the U.S.
Able .. Brilliantly captures a moment when young Black activists who had lent their voices to the Freedom Movement’s unifying call for integration began to recognize this goal as one (like nonviolence itself) adopted more as a practical necessity than the be-all, end-all of the centuries-old struggle for liberation and justice ... Deft.
Tighty focused ... The author expertly examines the roots and resistance to the advancement of Black Americans, which are as relevant as ever ... An essential volume in the history of Black liberation movements.
Whitaker elevates the movement’s lesser-known figures, analyzes how internal and external forces splintered the movement, and contextualizes cultural developments including the free jazz of John Coltrane and Charles Mingus and the emergence of the Afro as a symbol of Black liberation. It adds up to a comprehensive and character-driven portrait of the 'first Black Power generation.'
