First Class Citizenship; The Civil Rights Letters of Jackie Robinson

xviii, [2], 359, [5] pages. Illustrations. Editor's Introduction. A Note on the Text. Notes. Location of Letters. Index. Ex-library with usual library markings. DJ had been pasted to boards. Michael G. Long is Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Peace and Conflict Studies at Elizabethtown College. Long has published numerous works on Martin Luther King, Jr., the Civil Rights Movement, Billy Graham, and Christian living. His books include First Class Citizenship: The Civil Rights Letters of Jackie Robinson and The Legacy of Billy Graham: Critical Reflections on America's Great Evangelist. At Elizabethtown College he teaches courses on Christian social ethics, the Civil Rights Movement, and peace and conflict studies. This work includes never-before-published letters that offer a rich portrait of the baseball star as a fearless advocate for racial justice at the highest levels of American politics. Jackie Robinson's courage on the baseball diamond is one of the great stories of the struggle for civil rights in America, and his Hall of Fame career speaks for itself. In First Class Citizenship, Jackie Robinson comes alive on the page. Michael G. Long has unearthed a remarkable trove of Robinson's correspondence with--and personal replies from--such figures as Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Martin Luther King, Hubert and Barry Goldwater. These conversations reveal the scope and depth of Robinson's effort during the 1950s and 1960s to rid America of racism. Writing eloquently and with evident passion, Robinson charted his own course, questioning the tactics of the civil rights movement, and challenging leaders when he felt they were guilty of hypocrisy--or worse. Through his words as well as his actions, Jackie Robinson personified the "first class citizenship" that he considered the birthright of all Americans, whatever their race. First Edition [Stated], First Printing [Stated].…