Let Freedom Ring: Stanley Tretick’s Iconic Images of the March on Washington

This book commemorates the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington, when nearly 300,000 people descended on the nation’s capital on August 28, 1963, to demand comprehensive civil rights legislation. Celebrity biographer Kelley (Oprah: A Biography) narrates the event and provides captions for photojournalist Stanley Tretick’s arresting black-and-white photos, collected here for the first time. Tretick’s photographs are a veritable who’s who of civil rights icons, including Martin Luther King Jr. Readers are given an intimate portrait of the weeks leading up to the march, as well as iconic images of the day. Tretick (1921–1999) was a master at capturing his subjects with depth and humanity. There’s J.F.K. leaning out of the back of his convertible to talk with a young African-American girl and greeting African-American supporters; a beatific-looking Martin Luther King Jr.; and comedian Dick Gregory telling jokes in a smoky club. Some of the freshest shots are of the crowd itself: a young African-American woman overcome with heat is helped by a white boy in uniform; several Sunday-best young men and women and well-appointed marchers play tourist and snap photos amid American flags on the National Mall. The book is a welcome marker of a seminal moment in American history. Over 100 b&w photos. Agent: Wayne Kaback, WSK Management. (Aug.)