1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910777604603321

Autore

Anthony David Henry <1952->

Titolo

Max Yergan [[electronic resource] ] : race man, internationalist, cold warrior / / David Henry Anthony III

Pubbl/distr/stampa

New York, : New York University Press, c2006

ISBN

0-8147-0756-4

1-4294-1390-5

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (399 p.)

Disciplina

323/.092

B

Soggetti

African Americans

African American political activists

African American intellectuals

African Americans - Politics and government - 20th century

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Description based upon print version of record.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references (p. 319-359) and index.

Nota di contenuto

; Introduction : In search of Max Yergan -- Beginnings : boyhood, Baptists, Bangalore -- World War One -- South Africa, part I -- South Africa, part II -- Progressive leader, 1936-1948 -- About face, 1948-1975 -- ; Epilogue.

Sommario/riassunto

In his long and fascinating life, black activist and intellectual Max Yergan (1892-1975) traveled on more ground—both literally and figuratively—than any of his impressive contemporaries, which included Adam Clayton Powell, Paul Robeson, W.E.B. Du Bois, and A. Phillip Randolph. Yergan rose through the ranks of the "colored" work department of the YMCA, and was among the first black YMCA missionaries in South Africa. His exposure to the brutality of colonial white rule in South Africa caused him to veer away from mainstream, liberal civil rights organizations, and, by the mid-1930s, into the orbit of the Communist Party. A mere decade later, Cold War hysteria and intimidation pushed Yergan away from progressive politics and increasingly toward conservatism. In his later years he even became an apologist for apartheid.Drawing on personal interviews and extensive archival research, David H. Anthony has written much more than a



biography of this enigmatic leader. In following the winding road of Yergan’s life, Anthony offers a tour through the complex and interrelated political and institutional movements that have shaped the history of the black world from the United States to South Africa.