Martin Luther King: A New Biography

One hundred years after the Civil War, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s nonviolent movement successfully led to granting civil rights that had been long delayed to African Americans. In his book, King: A Life (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2030), Jonathan Eig narrates King’s life, from his childhood to his death. The book is based on hundreds of interviews conducted with people who knew King. Eig said that he wanted to write this book so it would feel like the reader knew King. The book includes new information from recently released FBI documents. We will discuss how the vast surveillance that the FBI waged against King was an effort to undercut the entire civil rights movement. In this study group, we will use this biography to explore King’s flaws, as well as his humanity. Participants will better understand the complexities of the man whose birthday we celebrate every January. Join the discussion.