King Al: How Sharpton Took the Throne

The Reverend Al Sharpton has gone from being portrayed in the mainstream press as a buffoon, a fake minister, a hustler, an opportunist, a demagogue, a race traitor, and an anti-Semite to being the most popular Black American activist, minister, and cable news host. King Al, a book by Ron Howell, tells the story of Sharpton's life trajectory, from his early life as a boy preacher to his present moment. It explores his controversies, including his work with the FBI and his involvement in the 1987 Tawana Brawley episode, and how the white press created the podium from which Sharpton became famous and infamous. Sharpton's rise to respectability is a testament to his endurance and boldness steeped in Black American history.

Format: Hardback
Length: 178 pages
Publication date: 12 October 2021
Publisher: Fordham University Press

The incredible story of the man and legend who has come to symbolize the continuing pursuit of justice for Blacks in the United States Through the 1980s,the mainstream press portrayed the Reverend Al Sharpton as a buffoon,a fake minister,a hustler,an opportunist,a demagogue,a race traitor,and an anti-Semite. Today,Sharpton occupies a throne that would have shocked the white newspaper reporters who covered him forty years ago. A mesmerizing story of astounding transformation,craftiness,and survival,King Al follows Reverend Sharptons life trajectory,from his early life as a boy preacher to his present moment as the most popular Black American activist/minister/cable news host. In the 1980s,Rev. Al created controversies that would have doomed a lesser man to the dustbin of history. Among these controversies were his work with the FBI as the agency attempted to locate Black Liberation Army leader Assata Shakur; and his involvement in the 1987 Tawana Brawley episode. Regarding the Brawley matter,a white prosecutor sued Sharpton,successfully,for falsely accusing him of having raped the then-fifteen-year-old Brawley. It was the white press,in its glory days,that created the podium from which Sharpton became both famous and infamous. Those reporters would joke that the most dangerous place in New York was between Al Sharpton and a television camera. But it was those reporters who made Sharpton the media figure he is today. Today,as host of MSNBCs PoliticsNation news program,Sharpton has more news viewers than those reporters ever had readers. The Reverend Als rise to respectability is a testament to an endurance and boldness steeped in Black American history. Born in Brooklyn to parents from the old slave-holding South,he transformed himself into one of the most influential Black leaders of the 20th century.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780823298877