"Born to a legacy of elite black Baptist ministry, Powell (1908-72) stood as the 'New Negro' whose triumphs over racial discrimination moved some to call him 'Mr. Civil Rights.' To others, the longtime Harlem congressman was either a prodigal son or merely unpredictable, intemperate, enigmatic, and dangerous."--"Library Journal." Photos.

Before Barack Obama, Colin Powell, and Martin Luther King, Jr., there was Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. -- the most celebrated and controversial black politician of his generation. An astute businessman known as "Mr. Civil Rights," he represented Harlem for twenty-four years in the House of Representatives. He was a man of the cloth and a civil rights leader, but Powell's reputation for flamboyance, arrogance, and womanizing made him his own worst enemy. In this towering and definitive biography, acclaimed journalist Wil Haygood paints a vivid portrait of one of black America's most memorable dignitaries.