Futures of Black Radicalism – Gaye Theresa Johnson and Alex Lubin, eds

Black rebellion has returned. Dramatic protests have risen up in scores of cities and campuses; there is renewed engagement with the history of Black radical movements and thought. Here, key intellectuals—inspired by the new movements and by the seminal work of the scholar Cedric J. Robinson—recall the powerful tradition of Black radicalism while defining new directions for the activists and thinkers it inspires.

In a time when activists in Ferguson, Palestine, Baltimore, and Hong Kong immediately connect across vast distances, this book makes clear that new Black radical politics is thoroughly internationalist and redraws the links between Black resistance and anti-capitalism. Featuring the key voices in this new intellectual wave, this collection outlines one of the most vibrant areas of thought today.

With contributions from Greg Burris, Jordan T. Camp, Angela Davis, Ruth Wilson Gilmore, Avery F. Gordon, Stefano Harney, Christina Heatherton, Robin D.G. Kelley, George Lipsitz, Fred Moten, Paul Ortiz, Steven Osuna, Kwame M. Phillips, Shana L. Redmond, Cedric J. Robinson, Elizabeth P. Robinson, Nikhil Pal Singh, Damien M. Sojoyner, Darryl C. Thomas, and Françoise Vergès.

Reviews
“An astonishing gathering of essays and interviews featuring leading emerging radical intellectuals.”

– David Roediger, author of Class, Race, and Marxism

“In America, issues of race, poverty, and injustice haunt our nation. Futures of Black Radicalism examines causes and resolutions of these troubling challenges. The need for radical thinking has never been more evident. To this end, this book is not just a gift; it is a necessity.”

– Harry Belafonte

“Cedric Robinson was a towering intellectual and courageous activist in the grand tradition of W.E.B Du Bois. In these bleak times, it is imperative to keep his legacy alive and build on his work and witness. This book meets this imperative in a powerful way!”

– Cornel West, author of The Radical King

“What stands out about this book is the richness of intellectual discourse within its pages. A variety of historians, sociologists, and other scholars all tackle a central question: what, precisely, does the Black Radical Tradition say about life in the twenty-first century?”

– Robert Greene III, Society for US Intellectual History Blog

Editors: Gaye Theresa Johnson and Alex Lubin
Publisher: Verso
ISBN: 9781784787585
Published: 08/2017
Format: Paperback
Page count: 272