Volume 51, Number 6 · April 8, 2004
Great Adventurer
By Gerald Early
Lost Prophet: The Life and Times of Bayard Rustin
by John D'Emilio
Free Press, 568 pages, $35.00
Time On Two Crosses: The Collected Writings of Bayard Rustin
edited and with an introduction by Devon W. Carbado and Donald Weise
Cleis Press, 354 pages, $16.95 (paper)
Bayard Rustin, the subject of John D'Emilio's recent biography Lost Prophet, was a striking example of the social reformer. He was black, Quaker, homosexual, pacifist, a labor organizer, a tactician, and a dandy—an odd combination of social, biological, and psychological traits and inclinations that perhaps could only have led to a career as a political activist that allowed him to fulfill both his sense of morality and his flair for self-dramatics. What else was Rustin fit to do that might have satisfied him at the time he reached adulthood in the 1930s except engage in the monumental project of changing the United States for the better?
Review, 4797 words
To read the full text of this piece, please choose one of the following options:
|
If you are already a subscriber to the Review's electronic edition, please sign in: |
To subscribe to the electronic edition, please press the button below. |
To purchase access to this article for $3, please press the button below. |