Great Black Leaders: Ancient and Modern (Journal of African Civilizations,) [Paperback]

Ivan Van Sertima (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Ivan Van Sertima (1935-2009) was professor of African studies at Rutgers University. He was visiting professor at Princeton University and lectured at more than one hundred colleges and universities. He edited the Journal of African Civilizations, which has greatly changed the way in which African history and culture are taught and studied.

Product Details

• Paperback: 433 pages
• Publisher: Transaction Publishers (January 1, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 088738739X
• ISBN-13: 978-0887387395
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #625,551 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ivan Van Sertima's pioneering work in linguistics and anthropology has appeared in numerous scholarly journals. Professor Van Sertima teaches Afro-American studies at Rutgers University.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great book, May 7, 2007

By 

craig "ANDREW" (north carolina usa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Great Black Leaders: Ancient and Modern (Journal of African Civilizations,) (Paperback)

I think that it is a must read. I certainly learned a lot from it.

5 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good attempt, but tarnishes scholarly character, May 4, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Great Black Leaders: Ancient and Modern (Journal of African Civilizations,) (Paperback)

I found this book to have a wealth of valuable information about the lives of many black leaders. I for one have come to associate scholarly integrity with Ivan Van Sertima's name, which contributed heavily to buying this book. However I found that impression tarnished by the obvious ommission of Elijah Muhammad from this book. I am continually seeing authors make a concerted attempt at writing him out of history, when the Nation of Islam under his charge, is on the history books having impacted Black people around the world very significantly. I could see if Malcolm X, who was included, was responsible for a significant portion of the Nation of Islam's affect on Blacks in America as has been incorrectly perpetuated for the last 15 years or so, but that is not accurate. If Van Sertima is going to group "Black Leaders" together who have impacted blacks, I am baffled as to why he would put leaders such as Hannibal, Shaka Zulu and Kwame Nkrumah and then put a student of a true leader, who, according to the same criteria the above men were chosen, is actually greater in stature. It is equal to omitting Martin Luther King in an effort to over-exaggerate the accomplishments of Jesse Jackson (MLK's student). Many other "so-called scholars" have made their efforts suspect with the same overt attempts. Perhaps if they would leave their emotions and political correctness out of their scholarship, the rest of us would take them seriously.