Julian Bond's Time to Teach

“It’s easy to understand why these courses would have been popular. His lectures are accessible, comprehensive, and compelling, and Bond, who once hosted Saturday Night Live, and who appeared in a couple of commercial films, was a charismatic presence. This authoritative testimony is bound to become a staple of American civil rights literature.”
—Booklist, Starred Review

“Mixing reminiscence and analysis of the long struggle against white supremacy, Bond’s lessons provide general readers and scholars alike penetrating studies of ideals, motivations, compromises, suffering, and sacrifice that won Blacks’ release from the worst of racist Southern pathology. Essential reading.”
—Library Journal, Starred Review

“[A] . . . revelatory collection of classroom lectures . . . The result is a worthy contribution to the historical record and an inspirational guide for today’s social justice activists.”
—Publishers Weekly

“This series of inspiring lectures, which Bond delivered in his popular college courses, is an indispensable master class that resonates with the current times. Within a broad synthesis of the freedom movement, Bond reflects stirringly on his own experiences, making this deep dive into civil rights history an engaging memoir as well as a guide for twenty-first-century crusades for equal rights. The dynamic narrative is made even more so by Danny Lyon’s photographs of the era.”
—The New York Times

“Jackson’s deep-voiced delivery is smooth and unemotional, suiting both the topic and the sometimes disturbing subject matter. . . . Jackson’s steady, polished narration allows listeners to reflect while absorbing this comprehensive history.”
—AudioFile Magazine

“There was no better teacher of the civil rights movement than Julian Bond. There is no better book for learning the civil rights movement than Julian Bond’s Time to Teach. Bond’s window into his movement will always be with us. His lessons for our movement will always be with us. An utterly invaluable resource.”
—Ibram X. Kendi, National Book Award–winning author of Stamped from the Beginning

“Every chapter radiates deep wisdom, fierce historical reality, and far-sighted philosophical insights. Bond brilliantly comes to grips with what freedom, social justice, and genuine racial equality are about in the American (and global) context.”
—Douglas Brinkley, the Katherine Tsanoff Brown Chair in Humanities and professor of history, Rice University

“Julian Bond lived this history with unflinching dignity and matchless grace. I miss him dearly. Our wounded country needs every lesson he teaches.”
—Taylor Branch, author of the trilogy America in the King Years

“Julian Bond, who was one of the greatest people I ever met, was a dedicated teacher, scholar, and civil rights leader. Julian Bond’s Time to Teach is a gift and should be required reading for every American. Bond’s words are a guiding light to the power we all possess.”
—Dave Matthews, Grammy Award–winning singer and songwriter

“The lessons in these lectures speak directly to the urgency of now, like an unsparing and prophetic admonishment to those who can or will not remember the past.”
—Diane McWhorter, author of the Pulitzer Prize–winning book Carry Me Home

“Julian Bond’s words continue to educate, inspire, and provoke. As we witness the emergence of new sensibilities regarding the complex ways racism has structured our institutions, Julian Bond’s Time to Teach reminds us of historical continuities, unfulfilled dreams, and collective hope for the future.”
—Angela Y. Davis, Distinguished Professor Emerita, History of Consciousness and Feminist Studies, University of California, Santa Cruz

“Forty years ago, I had the good fortune to hear Julian Bond speak. I was a third-year law student at Ole Miss, and there were plenty of skeptics in the crowd. They didn’t bother him; nothing did. He was cool, polished, smart, dramatic, and thoroughly prepared. I admitted to myself that I would never be able to speak like him. And I was correct.”
—John Grisham