Faith in Black Power: Religion, Race, and Resistance in Cairo, Illinois

A vital exploration of the relationship of black churches and black politics.<br In 1969, nineteen-year-old Robert Hunt was found dead in the Cairo, Illinois,police station. The white authorities ruled the death a suicide, but manymembers of the African American community believed that Hunt had beenmurdered-a sentiment that sparked rebellions and protests across the city.Cairo suddenly emerged as an important battleground for black survival inAmerica and became a focus for many civil rights groups, including the NAACP.The United Front, a black power organization founded and led by ReverendCharles Koen, also mobilized-thanks in large part to the support of localChristian congregations. In this vital reassessment of the impact of religion on the black powermovement, Kerry Pimblott presents a nuanced discussion of the ways in whichblack churches supported and shaped the United Front. She deftly challengesconventional narratives of the de-Christianization of the movement, revealingthat Cairoites embraced both old-time religion and revolutionary thought.