On the evening of June 12, 1963 -- the day President John F. Kennedy
gave his most impassioned speech about the need for interracial
tolerance "Medgar Evers, the NAACP's first field secretary in
Mississippi, was shot and killed by an assassin's bullet in his
driveway. The still-smoking gun -- bearing the fingerprints of Byron De
La Beckwith, a staunch white supremacist -- was recovered moments later
in some nearby bushes. Still, Beckwith remained free for over thirty
years, until Evers's widow finally forced the Mississippi courts to
bring him to justice. The Autobiography of Medgar Evers tells the full
story of one the greatest leaders of the civil rights movement, bringing
his achievement to life for a new generation. Although Evers's memory
has remained a force in the civil rights movement, the legal battles
surrounding his death have too often overshadowed the example and
inspiration of his life. Myrlie Evers-Williams and Manning Marable have
assembled the previously untouched cache of Medgar's personal documents,
writings, and speeches. These remarkable pieces range from Medgar's
monthly reports to the NAACP to his correspondence with luminaries of
the time such as Robert Carter, General Counsel for the NAACP in the
landmark Brown v. Board of Education case. Most important of all are
the recollections of Myrlie Evers, combined with letters from her
personal collection. These documents and memories form the backbone of
The Autobiography of Medgar Evers a cohesive narrative detailing the
rise and tragic death of a civil rights hero.
