"An elegant and timely history of how black intellectuals have long made a case for the intersections between class and race."—The Nation
"A meticulously researched look into the development of King’s thought. . . . Laurent’s important new book highlights the depth of the wisdom and organizing skill he brought to the movement for economic justice."—The Progressive
Shortly before his assassination, Martin Luther King Jr. called for a radical redistribution of economic and political power to transform the whole of society. In 1967, he envisioned and designed the Poor People’s Campaign, an interracial effort that was carried out after his death. This campaign brought together impoverished Americans of all races to demand better wages, better jobs, better homes, and better education. King and the Other America explores this overlooked and obscured episode of the late civil rights movement, deepening our understanding of King’s commitment to social justice and also of the long-term trajectory of the civil rights movement.
Digging into earlier radical arguments about economic inequality across America, which King drew on throughout his entire political and religious life, Sylvie Laurent argues that the Poor People’s Campaign was the logical culmination of King’s influences and ideas, which have had lasting impact on young activists and the public. Fifty years later, growing inequality and grinding poverty in the United States have spurred new efforts to rejuvenate the campaign. This book draws the connections between King's perceptive thoughts on substantive justice and the ongoing quest for equality for all.
Sylvie Laurent is a French cultural historian who studies race and class in the United States and teaches American Studies at Sciences Po (Paris). She was previously a W. E. B. Du Bois fellow at Harvard University.
“A rich and novel account of the Poor People’s Campaign, King and the Other America challenges common understandings of the movement and its significance in the histories of race, poverty, and social policy in the United States. It compels us to see the campaign as a pivotal moment in U.S. political history. Fascinating.”—William P. Jones, author of The March on Washington: Jobs, Freedom, and the Forgotten History of Civil Rights
“Sylvie Laurent’s deep research and thoughtful analysis links King's campaigns to overturn all forms of racial and economic oppression to African American history and to religious, labor, and freedom movements. She brilliantly provides us with a deeper understanding of how King’s legacy informs our continuing struggles for economic justice.”—Michael K. Honey, author of To the Promised Land: Martin Luther King and the Fight for Economic Justice
“Much has already been written about the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., but Sylvie Laurent's King and the Other America nonetheless offers fresh and thought-provoking insights about a visionary who was more than a civil rights leader.”—Clayborne Carson, author of Martin's Dream: My Journey and the Legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.
“Sylvie Laurent's King and the Other America is a stunning reappraisal of the Poor People's Campaign. Laurent provides a rigorous historical analysis of the precedents for the campaign and the forces that shaped King's moral and political compass. This book is a vital read for anyone interested in eradicating injustice and inequality and for anyone seeking to understand why the United States today is so deeply economically and racially polarized. Despite its unflinching eye for the shortcomings of liberalism within the United States, Laurent finds hope by highlighting how the same radical forces that produced King and the Poor People's Campaign are once again beginning to emerge.”—Michael C. Dawson, author of Black Visions: The Roots of Contemporary African-American Political Ideologies
384 pp.6 x 9
9780520288577$29.95|£25.00Paper
Jan 2019