THE NEGRO SPIRITUAL SPEAKS OF LIFE AND DEATH: Being the Ingersoll Lecture on the Immortality of Man, 1947

New York: Harper & Brothers, 1947. Hardcover. Fine/Very good. Lacking a statement of printing, with the K-W code (October, 1947) on the copyright page. Inscribed by Howard Thurman on the front flyleaf. 12mo: 56 pp. Original green cloth binding, with a printed paper title label. A fine copy in a lightly toned dust jacket with an unobtrusive tape reinforcement to the spine head.

As a prominent religious figure, Thurman (1899-1981) played a leading role in many social justice movements and organizations of the 20th century. His theology of radical nonviolence influenced and shaped a generation of civil rights activists, and he was a key mentor (truncated) to leaders within the civil rights movement, including Martin Luther King, Jr. In this work, he explores how protest and resistance are expressed in Spirituals and how these songs have been a “spiritual watering hole” in his life. (Inventory #: 78396)