Ballots and Bullets - by James Robenalt (Paperback)

About the Book

" On July 23, 1968, police in Cleveland battled with black nationalists in a night of terror that saw 6 people killed and at least 15 wounded. The gun battle touched off days of heavy rioting. The confrontation was surprising given that Cleveland had just elected Carl Stokes, the first black mayor of a major US city, who just four months earlier had kept peace in Cleveland the night that Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. Now his credibility and reputation lay in tatters; the leader of the black nationalists, Fred Ahmed Evans, had used Cleveland NOW! public funds to buy the rifles and ammunition used in the shootout. Ballots and Bullets looks at the roots of the violence and its political aftermath in Cleveland, a uniquely important city in the civil rights movement. Fifty years later, the specter of race violence and police brutality still haunts the United States."--Provided by publisher.

Book Synopsis

On July 23, 1968, police in Cleveland battled with black nationalists in a night of terror that saw 6 people killed and at least 15 wounded. The gun battle touched off days of heavy rioting. The confrontation was surprising given that Cleveland had just elected Carl Stokes, the first black mayor of a major US city, who just four months earlier had kept peace in Cleveland the night that Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. Now his credibility and reputation lay in tatters; the leader of the black nationalists, Fred Ahmed Evans, had used Cleveland NOW! public funds to buy the rifles and ammunition used in the shootout. Ballots and Bullets looks at the roots of the violence and its political aftermath in Cleveland, a uniquely important city in the civil rights movement. Fifty years later, the specter of race violence and police brutality still haunts the United States.

Review Quotes

"Ballots and Bullets is a comprehensive account of this key historical moment that still resonates today." --Marian Wright Edelman, President, Children's Defense Fund


"A beautiful and moving portrait of a city that explains so much about our racial politics, then and now. Robenalt weaves together the stories of famous and not-so-famous black political leaders to show the consequences of racism and the ways that various leaders have tried to address it. An important topic that everyone would benefit from learning more about." --Michael Smerconish, CNN host and SiriusXM radio journalist

"Jim Robenalt brings new perspective to difficult history with a fresh approach....Ballots and Bullets takes on the complicated story of race and the police, but expertly places it in the larger historical context that includes Dr. King, Malcolm X, and Robert Kennedy. [Robenalt] is a rising, original historian. --Rick Ungar and Michael Steele, Steele and Ungar, Sirius XM's POTUS Channel

About the Author

James Robenalt is a trial lawyer and the author of January 1973, The Harding Affair, and Linking Rings. He lives in Cleveland, Ohio.