"Know whence you came. If you know whence you came, there is really no limit to where you can go."
--James Baldwin
In these troubled times, wisdom often seems in short supply. But as this magnificent volume reminds us, African Americans have been blessed with a precious legacy of wisdom, gained through long hard years of struggle by those who have gone before. Wisdom is the most hallowed gift born of experience and endurance.
The life-affirming guidance in The Wisdom of the Elders has been gleaned from this bountiful harvest and includes some of the most electrifying and deeply moving writings and speeches ever produced. Here are the unedited works of such luminaries as Sojourner Truth, W. E. B. DuBois, Martin Luther King Jr., Elijah Muhammad, Lorraine Hansberry, Thurgood Marshall, Zora Neale Hurston, Adam Clayton Powell, Mary McLeod Bethune, Marcus Garvey, Barbara Jordan, Paul Robeson, Jean Toomer, and many others.
The elders' empowering messages and Robert Fleming's interpretations offer us mother wit, cultural truths, and spiritual sustenance. These words challenge and inspire us to build on the best of our past, to insure our future.


From the Hardcover edition.