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FREEDOMWAYS 
FOURTH QUARTER 1971

trials of the 1950's and early 60's.

It seems almost incredible now, as then, that there should prevail the same kind of vengeful pre-judgement of the accused, the same eager outreach for unsupported evidence, the same brutal refusal to give a hearing to defense testimony—all in the same carefully cultivated atmosphere of general public hysteria directed against the feared and persecuted minority. 

The "conspiracy" trial resulted in mammoth convictions: thirteen blacks were burned to death at the stake; eighteen blacks and four whites, including two women and a Catholic priest were hanged; and seventy blacks were transported to slavery in the Caribbean.

So long as there remains the same kind of race and class justice in the United States, this book is well worth placing on one's shelf. Aside from its historical authenticity and rarity, it is a grim reminder to ourselves that those who do not learn from history are condemned to repeat its mistakes.

Augusta Strong

THE BEST OF THE YOUNG BLACK POETS 
NATURAL PROCESS: An Anthology of New Black Poetry. Edited by Ted Wilentz and Tom Weatherly. Hill and Wang, Inc., New York. 181 pages. $1.95 paper, $5.95 cloth. Intriguing biographical sketches included.

PRAISE BE TO:
Africa, Mother of the Sphinx,
who brought our souls back from the Land
of the Dead.

THIS CHANT-LIKE PHRASE from Askia Muhammad Toure's poem "Juju" reflects a return to the basic, the elemental. There is a boldness that stems from the stark, nude figures of African sculpture. Academic mumbo-jumbo is replaced by a language of vigor and purpose. It is the tribal language of blacks—eulogizing dead heroes, honoring lives ones, and establishing a black code of existence for all. Of the elegies, "Black Moses" by Conyus is particularly revealing. The great promoter of non-violence—cut down by the emotions he most abhorred—is a preponderant theme:

he laid
on the asphalt 

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Transcription Notes:
---------- Reopened for Editing 2024-02-14 15:34:59