American black militant Eldridge Cleaver.

Eldridge Cleaver

(1935 - 1998)

Convicted of assault with intent to murder at the age of twenty-two, Eldridge Cleaver spent nine years in jail before an essay that he published in Ramparts magazine helped win him parole in 1966. Soon after his release, he met Huey Newton and Bobby Seale, founders of the Black Panther Party, and became their minister of information. He later published the best-selling book Soul On Ice in 1968, became a prominent civil rights leader, joined the Black Panther Party, formed an addiction to cocaine, followed Reverend Sun Myung Moon, designed men’s trousers, became a Republican, and, finally, converted to Mormonism.

All Writing

Voices In Time

1960 | San Quentin

Meeting a Guru

Eldridge Cleaver’s behind-bars guide.More

Issues Contributed