Awards

• Short-listed for Hurston/Wright LEGACY Award (Nonfiction) 2015

Overview

"In 1964 Malcolm X was invited to debate at the Oxford Union Society at Oxford University. The topic of debate that evening was the infamous phrase from Barry Goldwater's 1964 Republican Convention speech:""Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice; moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue."" At a time when Malcolm was traveling widely and advocating on behalf of blacks in America and other nations, his thirty minute speech at the Oxford Union stands out as one of the great addresses of the civil rights era. Delivered just months before his assassination, the speech followed a period in which Malcolm had traveled throughout Africa and much of the Muslim world. The journey broadened his political thought to encompass decolonization, the revolutions underway in the developing world, and the relationship between American blacks and non-white populations across the globe-including England. Facing off against debaters in one of world's most elite institutions, he delivered a revolutionary message that tackled a staggering array of issues: the nature of national identity; US foreign policy in the developing world; racial politics at home; the experiences of black immigrants in England; and the nature of power in the contemporary world. It represents a moment when his thought had advanced to its furthest point, shedding the parochial concerns of previous years for an increasingly global and humanist approach to ushering in social change.Set to publish near the fiftieth anniversary of his death, Malcolm X at Oxford Union will reshape our understanding not only of the man himself, but world politics both then and now."

Full Product Details

9780199975471

Table of Contents

Reviews

An essential companion to 1963's 'Message to the Grassroots' or 1964's 'The Ballot or the Bullet' in any assessment of Malcolm X as a political thinker and activist. -Publishers Weekly Saladin Ambar writes of the impact Malcolm had on his generation of young black males who 'took on new names' if not because of Malcolm, then at least with his ghostly assistance...Many of us made knowing Malcolm a kind of vocation.' Malcolm X at Oxford Union is a testament to the depth of that vocation. -Jason Berry, America In this well-written book, Saladin Ambar adds substance to the extensive literature on Malcolm X. This book makes an important contribution to our understanding of campaign finance reform and is a welcome addition to the literature. -Political Science Quarterly

It is no mean feat to engage the reader's attentin for 170 pages on a speech that is reproduced in a mere 11, and Ambar is to be congratulated on pulling it off [...] We still find ourselves asking just what, in the months leading up to his (Malcom X) assasination, did he stand for? This book certainly helps us to answer that question. Hakim Adi, Times Higher Education

An essential companion to 1963's 'Message to the Grassroots' or 1964's 'The Ballot or the Bullet' in any assessment of Malcolm X as a political thinker and activist. - Publishers Weekly

"""An essential companion to 1963's 'Message to the Grassroots' or 1964's 'The Ballot or the Bullet' in any assessment of Malcolm X as a political thinker and activist. "" -Publishers Weekly ""Saladin Ambar writes of the impact Malcolm had on his generation of young black males who 'took on new names' if not because of Malcolm, then at least with his ghostly assistance...Many of us made knowing Malcolm a kind of vocation.' Malcolm X at Oxford Union is a testament to the depth of that vocation."" -Jason Berry, America ""In this well-written book, Saladin Ambar adds substance to the extensive literature on Malcolm X. This book is a welcome addition to the literature."" -Political Science Quarterly"

Author Information

Saladin Ambar, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Lehigh University and author of How Governors Built the Modern American Presidency.

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