Martin Luther King, Jr. Assassinated

[No place]: John E. Williams, 1968. Softcover. Fine. First edition. 16mo. (3.5" x 6"). [20]pp. Stapled wraps. [20] pp. VG+. Author photo on title page. Fine. Presentation Copy with printed label stating "This Book Has Been Presented To B. Jones" and Signed the author "Rev. John E. Williams." Below is a small ownership sticker from a Chicago address.

According to the biography in the opening pages, this is Williams's fifth book. Williams, born in Sandflat, Texas, in 1926, writes that without God "we will have no law and order, no morality, no conscience, no nothing. This is happening so America is doomed." What follows is a reflective essay on violence, God, and peace in the wake of King's death and funeral (the text points to this being written in the days after the funeral, as he gives intimate details of people and events in Atlanta for the funeral).

In his Introduction, Williams writes, "Dr. King's influence as a good leader extended far beyond, I am sure, man's competence...But our lives are never the same after we as Negroes come to know the true meaning of Dr. King's work. He sees in us what we can become, and did lead us toward that goal. How fortunate we are to know a man like Martin Luther King, Jr."

Williams condemns the violence against black bodies in America, writing, "But one of the most bitter complaints of the Negroes in Memphis, not only in Memphis, but in cities throughout the nation, is that Negroes feel that they get less protection and more pushing around from the police than do white citizens. Memphis Negroes have been feeling that there are more than a few members of the police force who eagerly seize upon any justification to pound a black head or pour bullets into a black body." Williams says that King was "a main hope for a tormented nation" before delivering his message of love, peace, and hope, writing, "Our country is too small for hate, love is a must or else this world will go up in flame."

A rare, unrecorded booklet on King, written and published soon after his assassination. Not in commerce, auction records, or *OCLC.*.