About this item
Myrlie Louise Beasley met Medgar Evers on her first day of college. They fell in love at first sight, married just one year later, and Myrlie left school to focus on their growing family. Medgar became the field secretary for the Mississippi branch of the NAACP, charged with beating back the most intractable and violent resistance to black voting rights in the country. Myrlie served as Medgar’s secretary and confidant, working hand in hand with him as they struggled against public accommodations and school segregation, lynching, violence, and sheer despair within their state’s “black belt.” They fought to desegregate the intractable University of Mississippi, organized picket lines and boycotts, despite repeated terroristic threats, including the 1962 firebombing of their home, where they lived with their three young children. On June 12, 1963, Medgar Evers became the highest profile victim of Klan-related assassination of a black civil rights leader at that time; gunned down in the couple’s driveway in Jackson. In the wake of his tragic death, Myrlie carried on their civil rights legacy; writing a book about Medgar’s fight, trying to win a congressional seat, and becoming a leader of the NAACP in her own right. In this groundbreaking and thrilling account of two heroes of the civil rights movement, Joy-Ann Reid uses Medgar and Myrlie’s relationship as a lens through which to explore the on-the-ground work that went into winning basic rights for Black Americans, and the repercussions that still resonate today.
About the Author
Joy-Ann Reid is the host of "AM Joy" -- a twice-weekly political talk show that airs weekend mornings on MSNBC. In addition to her hosting duties, Joy serves as a political analyst, appearing on NBC News and MSNBC programs including "Meet the Press," "Hardball with Chris Matthews," "The Rachel Maddow Show," "The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell," "All In with Chris Hayes" and "Andrea Mitchell Reports." Joy writes a weekly column for The Daily Beast and is the author or editor of two books: Fracture, Barack Obama, the Clintons and the Racial Divide (William Morrow, 2015) and We Are the Change We Seek: the Speeches of Barack Obama (Bloomsbury, 2017) . Joy was previously the host of "The Reid Report," a daily program that offered Reid's distinctive analysis and insight on the day's news. Before that, she was the Managing Editor of theGrio.com, a daily online news and opinion platform devoted to delivering stories and perspectives that reflect and affect African-American audiences. She joined theGrio.com with experience as a freelance columnist for the Miami Herald and as editor of the political blog The Reid Report. She is a former talk radio producer and host for Radio One, and previously served as an online news editor for the NBC affiliate WTVJ in Miramar, FL.During the 2004 presidential campaign, Reid served as the Florida deputy communications director for the 527 "America Coming Together" initiative, and was a press aide in the final stretch of President Barack Obama's Florida campaign in 2008. Reid's columns and articles have appeared in the Miami Herald, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, South Florida Times and Salon.com. She and her husband own a documentary film production company, that is currently working on its maiden project.Reid graduated from Harvard University in 1991 with a concentration in film, and is a 2003 Knight Center for Specialized Journalism fellow. She currently resides in Brooklyn with her husband and family. Follow her on Twitter @JoyAnnReid and on Facebook at "Joy Reid Official."
