1st Edition

The Modern African American Political Thought Reader From David Walker to Barack Obama

Edited By Angela Jones Copyright 2013
    472 Pages
    by Routledge

    472 Pages
    by Routledge

    The Modern African American Political Thought Reader compiles the work of great African American political thinkers throughout the twentieth century and up through today to show the development of black political thought and trace the interconnectedness of each person's ideas through their own words. From abolition, through civil rights, Black nationalism, radical feminism, neo-conservativism, and the new Black Moderate, Angela Jones has collected the key readings of the most important figures in black political history.

    Each chapter includes an introduction to the themes of the chapter, a biographical sketch of the person profiled, and some of their greatest works, chosen to show the range of political subjects of interest to African Americans. From Radicals like Angela Y. Davis to Conservatives such as Michael Steele, this anthology showcases the diversity of political thought within the African American community. It is a must for anyone interested in African American history and politics.

    Introduction

    Part I: The Antebellum Era: the Rise of Abolitionism

    Chapter 1: David Walker

    Chapter 2: Maria Stewart

    Chapter 3: Frederick Douglass

    Chapter 4: Anna Julia Cooper

    Part II: Reconstruction and Beyond: Debates over the Negro Problem and the Creation of Civil Rights Discourse

    Chapter 5: Alexander Crummell

    Chapter 6: Booker T. Washington

    Chapter 7: Ida B. Wells

    Chapter 8: William Monroe Trotter

    Chapter 9: W.E.B. Du Bois

    Chapter 10: A. Philip Randolph

    Chapter 11: Bayard Rustin

    TChapter 12: Mary McLeod Bethune

    Chapter 13: Martin Luther King Jr.

    Part III: Black Nationalism: Its Roots and Development

    Chapter 14: Martin Delaney

    Chapter 15: Henry McNeal Turner

    Chapter 16: Marcus Garvey

    Chapter 17: Malcolm X

    Chapter 18: Stokley Carmichael/Kwame Toure

    Chapter 19: The Black Panthers: Founders Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale

    Part IV: Black Radical Feminism

    Chapter 20: Claudia Jones

    Chapter 21: Florynce "Flo" Kennedy

    Chapter 22: Shirley Chisholm

    Chapter 23: Angela Y. Davis

    Part V: Modern Black Conservatives: Why Black "Neo-Cons" Matter

    Chapter 24: Clarence Thomas

    Chapter 25: Alan Keyes

    Chapter 26: Michael Steele

    Chapter 27: Star Parker

    Part VI: The New Black Moderate: Obama and Beyond

    Chapter 28: Barack Obama

    Biography

    Angela Jones is Assistant Professor of Sociology at Farmingdale State College, State University of New York’

    The Modern African American Political Thought Reader is an important and timely resource for the study of African American History and Culture.

    Peniel E. Joseph, author of Dark Days, Bright Nights: From Black Power to Barack Obama

    Cutting through the 'noise' of a new class of mainstream media pundits, The Modern African American Political Thought Reader provides a great social and intellectual service by connecting an illustrious past and present of African American thought production. The discourse, and the actions this discourse inspires, is an invaluable contribution to a much-needed delineation of the nuances within black historical and contemporary political thought. Most importantly, The Modern African American Political Thought Reader necessarily troubles our conception of "the" black community as a singular, unified entity. Instead, Jones' volume reveals the plurality and collisions of intellectual debate that are crucial to shaping a vital vision of African Americans with a linked destiny, but disparate strategies for achieving social justice.

    Kimberly Springer, author of Living for the Revolution: Black Feminist Organizations, 1968–1980