{"product_id":"a-burning-house-my-politics-9798893850918","title":"A Burning House: My Politics","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe late, legendary performer and activist's candid reflections on American race relations and social movements, based on previously unpublished conversations with the award-winning historian\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"The only thing that has disrupted--and at the same time anointed--my path to popular successes was my politics, because I've said and done things that most artists would never have survived.\" --Harry Belafonte\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cp\u003eHarry Belafonte was more than a bestselling folk singer and Hollywood's first Black matinée idol; he was also the secret weapon of human rights movements for seventy years--a close confidante of Martin Luther King Jr. and Eleanor Roosevelt; a trusted whisperer to JFK; and a political advisor to African heads of state.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eBelafonte simultaneously advised Robert F. Kennedy on how to win the Black vote, openly supported Communist leaders including Fidel Castro, and skillfully avoided being blacklisted by J. Edgar Hoover. He was also a masterful fundraiser, almost singlehandedly bankrolling the civil rights movement from his own earnings as well as donations solicited from Hollywood friends and Vegas mobsters. It was Belafonte's idea to organize superstar artists to record the hit song \"We Are the World\" in 1984 to benefit famine victims in Africa.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn this candid, revelatory book, drawn from a series of conversations with historian Kevin Baker shortly before Belafonte's death in 2023, the legendary singer of \"Day-O\" shares his philosophy on racial politics, African colonialism, the emergence of Israel, the shortcomings of Barack Obama, and the rise of Donald Trump. \u003cem\u003eA Burning House\u003c\/em\u003e offers a primer on celebrity activism at its best--as well as a cautionary tale about the rise of American authoritarianism.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Harry Belafonte,Kevin Baker\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e New Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 10\/13\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 208\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.8lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.70h x 5.60w x 1.00d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9798893850918","brand":"New Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48531830309001,"sku":"9798893850918","price":22.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0636\/9240\/6921\/files\/img_c9df7c9f-c7a4-4742-8879-ce0a99664e19.jpg?v=1791324042","url":"https:\/\/sonsanddaughtersbooks.com\/products\/a-burning-house-my-politics-9798893850918","provider":"Sons and Daughters Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}