Malcolm X As They Knew Him - Softcover

This riveting book presents a wide-ranging view of Malcolm X, the man and the leader, combining essays on Malcolm X, word-for-word transcripts of interviews conducted with the leader, and remembrances of Malcolm by those who knew him.

The book opens with snippets of remembered scenes and conversations with Malcolm X as recounted by such noted political and cultural figures as Alex Haley, James Baldwin, Maya Angelou, Eldridge Cleaver, C. Eric Lincoln, journalist Claude Lewis, historian John Henrik Clarke, civil rights leader James Farmer, lawyer William Kunstler, and poet Sonia Sanchez.

The fascinating second section of the book contains seven word-for-word transcripts of interviews with Malcolm X, including the famed 1963 Playboy interview with Alex Haley and interviews with Kenneth Clark and Robert Penn Warren. In both dialogues, Malcolm X shows his incredible ability to distill information and to formulate intriguing replies to truly complex political and cultural questions. The book also features radio interviews, which show the strain of his perilous relationship with the Nation of Islam in the final days of his life. The rush of verbal brilliance from the incisive mind of Malcolm X will hold you in thrall.

The final section of the book, "The Man, the Myth and the Mission", includes essays by Eldridge Cleaver, who writes about his reaction to learning of the news of Malcolm's death while in prison. Robert Penn Warren gives a southern white man's take on a black man who rises from poverty to transform his life several times.

With its range and variety, Malcolm X: As They Knew Him presents a unique look at a man whose life remains indelibly imprinted in our country's history.

ifetime, the name Malcolm X was a lightning rod that electrified the black community. Now, thirty years after his death, we are still coming to grips with the complexity, and power of his message. In this fascinating volume, Malcolm X, the man and the leader, stands revealed in a shimmering mosaic of memories, interviews, insights, and appreciations by:

-- Maya Angelou - James Baldwin - James Booker Elombe Braath - James Brown - Kenneth B. Clark John Henrik Clarke - Eldridge Cleaver - Joe Durso James Farmer - Kathy Gibson - Peter Goldman - Rosa Guy - Robert Haggins - Alex Haley - Hinton Johnson Benjamin Karim - Charles Kenyatta - Yuri Kuchiama William Kunstler - Maria Laurino - Claude Lewis Abby Lincoln - C. Eric Lincoln - Julian Mayfield Bayard Rustin - Sonia Sanchez - Dick Schaap - George Sims - James Small - Michael Thelwell - Mike Wallace Robert Penn Warren - Ralph Wiley - Alice Windom

More than thirty luminaries describe how Malcolm X touched and, in some cases, radicall