Justice Rising

Robert Kennedy's America in Black and White

By: Patricia Sullivan

Narrated by: Leon Nixon

Length: 23 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

A leading civil rights historian places Robert Kennedy for the first time at the center of the movement for racial justice of the 1960s―and shows how many of today’s issues can be traced back to that pivotal time.

History, race, and politics converged in the 1960s in ways that indelibly changed America. In Justice Rising, a landmark reconsideration of Robert Kennedy’s life and legacy, Patricia Sullivan draws on government files, personal papers, and oral interviews to reveal how he grasped the moment to emerge as a transformational leader.

When protests broke out across the South, the young attorney general confronted escalating demands for racial justice. What began as a political problem soon became a moral one. In the face of vehement pushback from Southern Democrats bent on massive resistance, he put the weight of the federal government behind school desegregation and voter registration. Bobby Kennedy’s youthful energy, moral vision, and capacity to lead created a momentum for change. He helped shape the 1964 Civil Rights Act but knew no law would end racism. When the Watts uprising brought calls for more aggressive policing, he pushed back, pointing to the root causes of urban unrest: entrenched poverty, substandard schools, and few job opportunities. RFK strongly opposed the military buildup in Vietnam, but nothing was more important to him than “the revolution within our gates, the struggle of the American Negro for full equality and full freedom.”

On the night of Martin Luther King’s assassination, Kennedy’s anguished appeal captured the hopes of a turbulent decade: “In this difficult time for the United States it is perhaps well to ask what kind of nation we are and what direction we want to move in.” It is a question that remains urgent and unanswered.

©2022 Patricia Sullivan (P)2022 Blackstone Publishing

A profound work

Patricia Sullivan’s extensive research and excellent writing give us an intimate view of Robert Kennedy’s passion and leadership in the troubled era of civil rights unrest. We relive the struggles faced in the 1960’s and are given a personal and political portrait of a man who’s life was lost too early. The audible performance was perfectly suited to the written narrative. I recommend this book unconditionally.

Great Story, Enlightening view of RFK

Great Story, Enlightening view of RFK and his ability to see, hear, and empathize with all people.

A masterful project

I was a child of the 60s and the name Kennedy evoked magic for many of us of a certain age. Later in life, I came to the belief that, of all the public members of the clan, Robert was the most compassionate and driven, and I've often wondered what we'd be like as a nation had he survived. This tome cements my belief that I was right.
This is a beautifully written and beautifully spoken work, and the scholarship that went into it is evident in every chapter. I've been an Audible member for quite some time, yet this is the first review I felt compelled to write. I highly recommend this.