A short life of the author
Andrew Jackson Young Jr. (born 1932 in New Orleans) is an American civil rights leader, clergyman, and politician. He was one of Martin Luther King Jr.’s closest associates in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, serving as executive director and playing a key role in the campaigns in Birmingham, St. Augustine, and Selma, and in the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
After King’s assassination, Young entered politics: he served in the U.S. House of Representatives (1973–1977), as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations (1977–1979), and as mayor of Atlanta (1982–1990), where he helped bring the 1996 Olympic Games to the city.
His writings include A Way Out of No Way (1994) and An Easy Burden: The Civil Rights Movement and the Transformation of America (1996), both providing firsthand accounts of the movement’s internal dynamics and strategic decisions.
Collecting Young
Young’s memoirs (Thomas Nelson, Trident Press) are collected by scholars of the civil rights movement. Signed copies are available through public appearances and events. The primary collecting interest is documentary — Young’s papers, correspondence, and photographs from the SCLC years.