Benjamin E. Mays

Books by Benjamin E. Mays

Born to Rebel: An Autobiography / Disturbed about Man / The Negro's God, As Reflected in His Literature

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Representative Speeches of a Great American Orator

Edited by Freddie C. Colston

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Reviews

Dr. Benjamin E. Mays Speaks is a documentary of thirty-one speeches delivered by the great educator, civil rights advocate, minister, philosopher, humanitarian, and orator. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. referred to Dr. Mays as his "spiritual and intellectual father," indicating the influence Mays had on the development of his social and religious thought. Dr. Mays inspired King while he was a student at Morehouse College during the 1940s through his Tuesday morning chapel speeches to the student body and in informal chats thereafter. The close bond between them remained throughout their lives.

In addition to mentoring King, the Nobel prize laureate, Mays had a significant impact on the lives of an immeasurable number of others who made meaningful contributions to American life and culture. Dr. Mays was a powerful, credible, smooth speaker who captured the audience's full attention in the first few minutes and held it until the end. This book is the first attempt to craft a representative collection of Dr. May's oratory that embraces the pre- and post-civil rights eras, along with lucid and logical analyses of many of the key issues of the twentieth century

--Publisher

As a minister, educator, ecumenist, counselor, civil rights activist, and author, Benjamin E. Mays achieved national and international renown. After earning a Ph.D. in Christian theology from the University of Chicago Divinity School, Mays became dean of the Howard University School of Religion. Serving in that capacity from 1934 to 1940, his contributions gained national recognition for the School of Religion and earned him an invitation to become the sixth president of Atlanta's Morehouse College. From that post until his retirement in 1967, Mays inspired generations of students to strive for moral and academic excellence and to work for racial justice in America. His 1948 chapel address introduced a young student named Martin Luther King Jr. to Gandhi's philosophy of nonviolence. Such a legacy made Benjamin Mays one of the most influential educators of twentieth century America.

Source: Dr. Benjamin E. Mays Speaks

For orders and information please contact the publisher University Press of America, Inc. 4720 Boston Way / Lanham, Maryland 20706 / 1-800-462-6420 / www.univpress.com

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updated 3 October 2007

Freddie C. Colston has published articles on politics and the black experience in professional journals. he was a student at Morehouse College during the presidency of Dr. Mays where he received his B.A. in political science in 1959. He received an M.A. from Atlanta University in 1966 and a Ph.D. in 1972 from Ohio State University; both graduate degrees are in political science. He has done extensive research on the life and career of Dr. Mays since 1984. The author has taught political science at Fort Valley State university, Southern University, University of Detroit, Dillard University, Tennessee State University, North Carolina Central University, and Georgia Southwestern State University. In addition to his academic appointments, Professor Colston served a stint at the Executive Seminar Center, U.S. Office of Personnel Management, in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, where he resides.