Black Radical Tradition

An exhaustive collection of revolutionary theory from slavery and reconstruction to Black Power to Black Feminism

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With activists taking to the streets with renewed vigor to fight racism, inequality, and capitalism, this collection of classic writings from the black radical tradition restores historical grounding and revolutionary genealogy of today's protest movements. Including key writings from thinkers and militants like W. E. B. Du Bois, Hubert Harrison, Harry Haywood, Claude McKay, Claudia Jones, C. L. R. James, Malcolm X, Angela Davis, Audre Lorde and the Combahee River Collective, as well as less lionized figures from the Union League, the CIO, the Revolutionary Action Movement and the grassroots initiatives of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, this remarkable collection of revolutionary black voices recasts how we think about the contours of American history and the practice of emancipatory politics.

The book takes black radicals seriously, not only as political actors or historical agents, but also as theorists and intellectuals who elaborated the ever-changing institutional parameters of white supremacy, and insisted on the universality of mass movements driven by the anonymous self-organization of black people aiming for nothing less than total social transformation. The essays throughout history are joined alongside commentaries that contextualize each contribution and draw out the broader themes of the tradition while also highlighting the different phases, dimensions, and organizations of a long and multifaceted freedom struggle. It is a vital resources for students, activists, and anyone interested in the strategic thinking of grassroots movements against racial capitalism.