I was pleased to see that the Plainfield Public Library already has a copy of "Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention" by Manning Marable. I pre-ordered a copy as soon as I heard about it and am now going through its 594 pages. It has been called the magnum opus of Marable, described by Cornel West as "the exemplary black scholar of radical democracy and black freedom in our time."The publication is not without controversy and there will no doubt be many years of intense discussion over its content, both in academic and political circles. The author tragically passed away just days before the book came out and so will not experience the ripples it makes in multiple communities over time.
I first heard Malcolm X speak on radio shows in the mid-20th century. It was evident that one way or another, he was going to be a force to be reckoned with. The reckoning he was dealt on Feb. 21, 1965 robbed the world of a thinker and doer with untold potential to effect change on society. This book deserves a close reading by Plainfielders.
--Bernice
page 4,5 and 452-453 turns the murder of Malcolm X to suspecting Plainfield's own Cathcart Nation of Islam leader.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if the Cathcart family will ever respond, but I definitely know the author, now deceased, can never add/change/correct future information that may become available regarding the Mr. Cathcart and his involvement in the murder.
Mr. Cathcart had no involvement in the murder. He was a prominent local representative of the Nation Of Islam. That does not a murderer make. Manning Marable intended to cash in on rumor, half truth and bald imagination to sell his book. He did nt care that real people would be injured by his libelous and slanderously false allegations.
ReplyDelete@ 2:24pm
ReplyDeleteWe may not ever know the truth, but Marable does not miss a beat in backing up anything he wrote.
It does create a lot of questions but if hidden, the truth must be given light.
Not a shining moment for any Cathcart that has done tremendous work in the community. It will forever stain the name.