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Michael Eric Dyson

Born: 1958 in Detroit, Michigan
Pen Name: None

Connection to Illinois: Dyson was a professor in DePaul University's Religious Studies department.

Biography: Michael Eric Dyson is an author, a Professor of Sociology at Georgetown University, a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times, and is a contributing editor of The New Republic and ESPN’s The Undefeated. Ebony magazine named him one of the 100 Most Influential African Americans and one of the 150 most powerful blacks in the nation. He currently resides in Washington, D.C.


Awards:
  • '''''The Black Presidency

Primary Literary Genre(s): Non Fiction

Primary Audience(s): Adult readers

Email: med52@georgetown.edu
Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/MichaelEDyson
Website: http://www.michaelericdyson.com
Michael Eric Dyson on WorldCat : http://www.worldcat.org/search?q=michael+eric+dyson


Selected Titles

April 4, 1968 :
ISBN: 0465002129 OCLC: 191729801

Basic Civitas Books, New York : ©2008.

A cultural critic reassesses the late civil rights leader's significance and influence on American society, as well as the ways in which his death transformed the discussion of race in America.

  April 4, 1968 :
ISBN: 9781433244919 OCLC: 226032812

Blackstone Audio, Ashland : 2008.

On April 4, 1968, at 6:01 P.M., while he was standing on a balcony at a Memphis hotel, Martin Luther King Jr. Was shot and fatally wounded. Only hours earlier King--the prophet for racial and economic justice in America--ended his final public speech by saying, I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight, that we as a people will get to the Promised Land. Acclaimed public intellectual and best-selling author, Michael Eric Dyson uses the fortieth anniversary of King's assassination as a starting point for a comprehensive reevaluation of the fate of America, specifically Black America, over the ensuing years. Dyson ambitiously, and controversially, investigates the ways in which we as a people have made it to the Promised Land that King spoke of and shines a bright light on the many areas that we still have a long way to go. Rather than only looking back, April 4, 1968 takes a sweeping 360-degree view of King's death--remembering all the toil, triumph, and tribulation that led to that fateful date while anticipating the ways in which the legacy of King's death will affect the future of this country.

Born to use mics :
ISBN: 9780465002115 OCLC: 612749946

Basic Civitas Books, New York : ©2010.

Academic essays reflect on the 1994 album Illmatic by Nasir Nas Jones, covering topics ranging from jazz history to gender.

Can you hear me now? :
ISBN: 0465018831 OCLC: 371501243

Basic Civitas Books, New York : ©2009.

Over the last 20 years, Michael Eric Dyson has become one of America's most visible-and quotable-public intellectuals. Whether in his sixteen books, or in countless newspapers, television and radio appearances, or on stages, podiums, and pulpits across the world, Dyson has spun an enchanting web of words that has caught the attention of the masses and elites alike. He has weighed in on a myriad array of topics - from faith to fatherhood, and from race to sex, as well as sports, manhood, gender, music, leadership, politics, language, love, justice, literature, suffering, death, hope, relat.

Can you hear me now? :
ISBN: 9780465019670 OCLC: 318423004

Basic Civitas Books, New York : 2011, ©2009.

Can You Hear Me Now? offers a sampling of Dyson's sharp wit, profound thought, and edifying eloquence on a dazzling array of enduring topics. -- Back cover.

Come hell or high water :
ISBN: 046501772X OCLC: 647874580

Basic Civitas, New York : 2007.

"When Hurricane Katrina tore through New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, hundreds of thousands were left behind to suffer the ravages of destruction, disease, and even death. The majority of these people were black; nearly all were poor. The Federal government's slow response to local appeals for help is by now notorious. Yet despite the cries of outrage that have mounted since the levees broke, we have failed to confront the disaster's true lesson: to be poor, or black, in today's ownership society, is to be left behind. Displaying the intellectual rigor, political passion, and personal empathy that have won him acclaim and fans all across the color line, Michael Eric Dyson offers a searing assessment of the meaning of Hurricane Katrina. Combining interviews with survivors of the disaster with his deep knowledge of black migrations and government policy over decades, Dyson provides the historical context that has been sorely missing from public conversation. He explores the legacy of black suffering in America since slavery and ties its psychic scars to today's crisis. And, finally, his critique of the way black people are framed in the national consciousness will shock and surprise even the most politically savvy reader. With this clarion call Dyson warns us that we can only find redemption as a society if we acknowledge that Katrina was more than an engineering or emergency response failure. From the TV newsroom to the Capitol Building to the backyard, we must change the way we relate to the black and the poor among us. What's at stake is no less than the future of democracy."

Debating race :
ISBN: 0465002064 OCLC: 77795901

Basic Civitas Books, New York : ©2007.

A collection of the author's previously unpublished intellectual encounters on race with some of today's most influential thinkers and politicians, including Jesse Jackson, Stephen Colbert, Ann Coulter, and Ted Koppel.

Debating Race :
ISBN: 9780786722099 OCLC: 792688536

Basic Books, New York : 2008.

Bestselling author Michael Eric Dyson collects his previously unpublished intellectual encounters-cordial and combative-with some of today's most influential thinkers and politicians.

  Full of the Hope That the President has Brought Us :
ISBN: 9780674035027 OCLC: 460318107

Harvard Univ Pr 2009.

Holler if you hear me :
ISBN: 0465017282 OCLC: 76874247

Ten years after his murder, rap artist Tupac Shakur is even more loved, contested and celebrated than he was in life. His posthumously released albums, poetry, and movies still top the charts; he inspires countless plays, articles, and websites by fans and critics alike. Who was Tupac and why does he matter so much?" Here, "hip-hop intellectual" Michael Eric Dyson, acclaimed for his writing on Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr., as well as his passionate defense of black youth culture, turns his attention to one of the most enigmatic and enduring figures of our time. Through original interviews and reporting, Dyson offers us a wholly original understanding of the controversial icon who has been called the "black Elvis".--From publisher description.

Holler if you hear me :
ISBN: 9780786735488 OCLC: 761645738

Basic Books, New York : 2006.

A wholly original way of looking at Tupac Shakur that will thrill those who already love the artist and enlighten those who want to understand him.

I may not get there with you :
ISBN: 068483037X OCLC: 45795792

Touchstone, New York : 2001, ©2000.

So much has changed since the glory days of the civil rights movement - and so much has stayed the same. African Americans command their place at every level of society, from the lunch counter to the college campus to the corporate boardroom - yet the gap between the American middle class and the black poor is as wide as ever. Where can we turn to find the vision that will guide us through these strange and difficult times? Michael Eric Dyson helps us find the answer in our recent past, by resurrecting the true Martin Luther King, Jr." "A private citizen who transformed the world around him, King was arguably the greatest American who ever lived. Yet, as Dyson so poignantly reveals, Martin Luther King, Jr. has disappeared in plain sight. Despite the federal holiday, the postage stamps, and the required reference in history textbooks, King's vitality and complexity have faded from view. Young people do not learn how radical he was, liberals forget that he despaired of whites even as he loved them, and contemporary black leaders tend to ignore the powerful forces that shaped him - the black church, language, and sexuality - thereby obscuring his relevance to black youth and hip-hop culture.

Is Bill Cosby right? :
ISBN: 9780786722075 OCLC: 759837452

Basic Civitas Books, New York, NY : 2006, ©2005.

The best-selling book that sparked a national debate about the class divide in black America.

Know what I mean? :
ISBN: 9780465017164 OCLC: 187100370

Basic Civitas Books, New York : ©2007.

Describes social, cultural, and political aspects of hip-hop music through dialogues with academic scholars and documentary filmmakers.

Mercy, mercy me :
ISBN: 0465017703 OCLC: 54372893

Basic Civitas Books, New York : ©2004.

Traces the life of an American icon to reconstruct a portrait of Gaye as a flawed artist, troubled by addiction and prone to domestic abuse, who nevertheless helped define America in the turbulent 1970s.

Mercy, mercy me :
ISBN: 9780786722471 OCLC: 914300033

Basic Civitas Books, New York : 2008.

The best-selling Motown artist of all time, Marvin Gaye defined the hopes and shattered dreams of an entire generation. Twenty years after his tragic death-he was shot by his father-his relevance persists because of the indelible mark his outsized talent left on American culture. A transcendent performer whose career spanned the history of rhythm and blues, from doo-wop to the sultriest of soul music, Gaye's artistic scope and emotional range set the soundtrack for America's tumultuous coming of age in the 1970s. Michael Eric Dyson's searching narrative illuminates Marvin Gaye's stellar ascendance-from a black church in Washington, D.C., to the artistic peak of What's Going On'-and charts his sobering personal decline. Dyson draws from interviews with those closest to Gaye to paint an intimate portrait of the tensions and themes that shaped contemporary urban America: racism, drug abuse, economic adversity, and the long legacy of hardship. Gaye's stormy relationships with women, including duet partner Tammi Terrell and wives Anna Gordy and Janis Hunter, are examined in light of the sexual revolution of the 1960s and 1970s. Dyson also considers family violence in the larger context of the African-American life and how that heartbreaking legacy resulted in Gaye's murder. Mercy, Mercy, Me is an unforgettable portrait of a beloved black genius whose art is reflected in the dynamism of contemporary urban America.

Open mike :
ISBN: 0465017657 OCLC: 50560445

Basic Civitas Books, New York : ©2002.

Pride :
ISBN: 0195312104 OCLC: 181741862

Oxford University Press ; Oxford ; 2006.

Of the seven deadly sins, pride is the only one with a virtuous side. It is certainly a good thing to have pride in one's country, in one's community, in oneself. But when taken too far, as Michael Eric Dyson shows in Pride, these virtues become deadly sins. Dyson, named by Ebony magazine as one of the 100 most influential African Americans, here looks at the many dimensions of pride. Ranging from Augustine and Aquinas, MacIntyre and Hauerwas, to Niebuhr and King, Dyson offers a thoughtful, multifaceted look at this "virtuous vice." He probes the philosophical and theological roots of pride in examining its transformation in Western culture. Dyson discusses how black pride keeps blacks from being degraded and excluded by white pride, which can be invisible, unspoken, but nonetheless very powerful. Dyson also offers a moving glimpse into the teachers and books that shaped his personal pride and vocation. Dyson also looks at less savory aspects of national pride. Since 9/11, he notes, we have had to close ranks. But the collective embrace of all things American, to the exclusion of anything else, has taken the place of a much richer, much more enduring, much more profound version of love of country. This unchecked pride asserts the supremacy of America above all others--elevating our national beliefs above any moral court in the world--and attacking critics of American foreign policy as unpatriotic and even traitorous. Hubris, temerity, arrogance--the unquestioned presumption that one's way of life defines how everyone else should live--pride has many destructive manifestations. In this engaging and energetic volume, Michael Eric Dyson, one of the nation's foremost public intellectuals, illuminates this many-sided human emotion, one that can be an indispensable virtue or a deadly sin. -- from publisher description.

Race rules :
ISBN: 0679781560 OCLC: 36520941

Vintage Books, New York : 1997.

A noted African American intellectual uses examples from the Black community to trace racism in American politics, media, society, and culture, criticizing the hypocrisy of white liberals and whites' myths of Black males.

  Race Rules. ;
ISBN: 9780465020799 OCLC: 760085227

Basic Books, 2012.

Tears we cannot stop :
ISBN: 1250135990 OCLC: 956745417

Fifty years ago Malcolm X told a white woman who asked what she could do for the cause, 'Nothing.' Michael Eric Dyson believes he was wrong. Now he responds to that question. If society is to make real racial progress, people must face difficult truths, including being honest about how Black grievance has been ignored, dismissed, or discounted.

  Tears we cannot stop :
ISBN: 9781427287250 OCLC: 969899829

In the wake of yet another set of police killings of black men, Michael Eric Dyson wrote a tell-it-straight, no holds barred piece for the New York Times last Sunday July 7: Death in Black and White (It was updated within a day to acknowledge the killing of police officers in Dallas). The response has been overwhelming. Beyonce

  The Black presidency :
ISBN: 0544811801 OCLC: 911171966

Michael Eric Dyson delivers a provocative exploration of the politics of race and the Obama presidency. Barack Obama's presidency unfolded against the national traumas of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Freddie Gray, and Walter Scott. The nation's first African American president was careful to give few major race speeches, yet he faced criticism from all sides, including from African Americans. How has Obama's race affected his presidency and the nation's identity? Dyson explores whether Obama's use of his own biracialism as a symbol has been driven by the president's desire to avoid a painful moral reckoning on race. And he sheds light on identity issues within the black power structure, telling how Obama has spurned traditional black power brokers, significantly reducing their leverage. Perhaps most movingly, Dyson illuminates the transformative moments, especially in his second term, when Obama has publicly embraced his blackness and used it as a powerful lens onto America, black and white. President Obama's own voice--from an Oval Office interview granted to Dyson for the book--along with that of Eric Holder, Al Sharpton, and Andrew Young, among others, adds depth to this tour of the nation's first black presidency.--Adapted from book jacket.

  The Black presidency :
ISBN: 9781501905902 OCLC: 939409487

Recorded Books, Prince Frederick, MD : â„—2016.

Dyson offers a provocative exploration into the meaning of America's first black presidency, and an analysis of how race and blackness shape our understanding of Barack Obama's achievements and failures, and America's racial future.

The Michael Eric Dyson reader /
ISBN: 0465017711 OCLC: 54893415

Basic Civitas Books, New York : ©2004.

From the Publisher: Acclaimed for his writing on Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Jr., Tupac Shakur, and many more, Michael Eric Dyson has emerged as the leading African American intellectual of his generation. This collection gathers the best of Dyson's vast and growing body of work from the last several years: his most incisive commentary, the most stirring passages, and the sharpest, most probing and broadminded critical analyses. From Michael Jordan to the role of religion in public life, from Toni Morrison to patriotism in the wake of 9/11, the mastery and ease with which Dyson tackles just about any subject of relevance to black America today is without parallel.

The Michael Eric Dyson Reader.
ISBN: 9780786725106 OCLC: 817924172

Basic Books, Washington : 2008.

: At last in one place-and in paperback-the best and most important writing from the leading African-American intellectual of his generation.

Why I love Black women
ISBN: 0465017630 OCLC: 50782649

The author writes an open love letter to the African American women in his life, proclaiming his adoration and respect for women of color in America.

 

 

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