Synopses & Reviews
Opposites in almost every way, mortally suspicious of each other at first, Lyndon Baines Johnson and Martin Luther King, Jr., were thrust together in the aftermath of John F. Kennedy's assassination. Both men sensed a historic opportunity and began a delicate dance of accommodation that moved them, and the entire nation, toward the historic Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Drawing on a wealth of newly available sources Johnson's taped telephone conversations, voluminous FBI wiretap logs, previously secret communications between the FBI and the president Nick Kotz gives us a dramatic narrative, rich in dialogue, that presents this momentous period with thrilling immediacy.
Judgment Days offers needed perspective on a presidency too often linked solely to the tragedy of Vietnam.
We watch Johnson applying the arm-twisting tactics that made him a legend in the Senate, and we follow King as he keeps the pressure on in the South through protest and passive resistance. King's pragmatism and strategic leadership and Johnson's deeply held commitment to a just society shaped the character of their alliance. Kotz traces the inexorable convergence of their paths to an intense joint effort that made civil rights a legislative reality at last, despite FBI director J. Edgar Hoover's vicious whispering campaign to destroy King.
Judgment Days also reveals how this spirit of teamwork disintegrated. The two leaders parted bitterly over King's opposition to the Vietnam War. In this first full account of the working relationship between Johnson and King, Kotz offers a detailed, surprising account that significantly enriches our understanding of both men and their time.
Review
"A piquant reminder that great social progress occurs when the powerful collaborate rather than joust." Kirkus Reviews
Review
"[A]n informed political investigation of these two civil rights warriors and the cause for which they fought and, in King's case, died. Highly recommended." Library Journal
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"Judgment Days provides a fresh and vivid account of the two men's interactions." The Washington Post
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"[M]eticulous research, restrained prose and deep appreciation of motivation and character that make Judgment Day a stirring, indeed heartbreaking, book." Samuel G. Freedman, The New York Times Book Review
Synopsis
and#147;A finely honed portrait of the civil rights partnership President Johnson and Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. forged . . . a fresh and vivid account.and#8221; and#151; Washington Post Book World
The Pulitzer Prizeand#150;winning journalist Nick Kotz offers the first thorough account of the complex working relationship between Lyndon Baines Johnson and Martin Luther King Jr. Tracing both leadersand#8217; paths, from Johnsonand#8217;s ascension to the presidency in 1963 to Kingand#8217;s assassination in 1968, Kotz describes how they formed a wary alliance that would become instrumental in producing some of the most substantial civil rights legislation in American history: the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Drawing on a wealth of newly available sourcesand#151;Johnsonand#8217;s taped telephone conversations, voluminous FBI wiretap logs, and secret communications between FBI director J. Edgar Hoover and the presidentand#151;Kotz examines the forces that drew the charismatic men together and those that eventually drove them apart. Kotzand#8217;s focused and incisive examination significantly enriches our understanding of both men.
This book will appeal to people interested in: Lyndon B. Johnson, Martin Luther King, Civil Rights, Race Relations, Voting Rights, 20th Century History, Politics, Political Investigations, Segragation, and American History.
"A powerful reminder that the Civil Rights and Voting Rights acts transformed the lives not just of black citizens, but of every American.and#8221; and#151; Christian Science Monitor
and#147;A hard-headed, no-nonsense look at these two towering figures of the 1960s and#133; [Judgment Days] vividly re-creates the behind-the-scenes dynamics informing civil rights politics.and#8221; and#151; Boston Globe
and#147;An important examination of a critical moment in American historyand#151;a battle for our nationand#8217;s soul.and#8221; and#151; Jimmy Carter
Nick Kotz is the author of five previous books on politics, social justice, and the civil rights movement. A renowned journalist, he has received a Pulitzer Prize and a National Magazine Award. He lives in Broad Run, Virginia.
About the Author
NICK KOTZ is the author of five previous books on politics, social justice, and the civil rights movement. A renowned journalist, he has received a Pulitzer Prize and a National Magazine Award. He lives in Broad Run, Virginia.
Table of Contents
Contents Introduction: Second Emancipation 1: The Cataclysm 2: Let Us Continue 3: A Fellow Southerner in the White House” 4: Hoover, King, and Two Presidents 5: A Fire That No Water Could Put Out 6: An Idea Whose Time Has Come 7: Lyndon Johnson and the Ku Klux Klan 8: A Political Revolution 9: Hoover Attacks 10: The LBJMLK Alliance 11: Shining Moment: We Shall Overcome 12: The Better Angels of Their Nature 13: This Time the Fire 14: Another Martyr Epilogue: The Legacy Acknowledgments Authors Note on Sources Abbreviations Notes Interview List Bibliography Index