Lez Edmond

Edmonds was a Seventh-day Adventist who initially attended Adelphi University for his BA and MA degree.[1] He later earned his PHD from Union Institute.[1] Edmonds stated in an interview that he was forced into Civil Rights while working for an electronic store.[2] It was here that a German co-worker called him a "god-damn black nigger."[2] When Edmonds reported this to HR, they stated he misheard this.[2]

Edmons believed that "Democrats and Dixiecrats" are the same thing.[2] Edmonds was a proponent of the use of the Schomburg Center in Harlem.[3] He was a proponent of the Freedom Now Party.[2] He was not a major fan of outside Civil Right leaders in his quote from 1964, he stated "to employ outside agitator rhetoric "is to imply that the [local] black community is neither capable nor has the desire to do anything like this"." [4] Edmonds was a Civil Rights activist in Harlem.[1] According to the book, Democracy with a Gun: America and the Policy of Force, Lez Edmond was an intellectual and friend of Malcolm X.[5] He urged Malcolm X to stay in the background for a while to avoid danger but his efforts failed.[6] He appeared in the Autobiography of Malcolm X and was an associate of Stokely Carmichael whom he set up interviews with.[5] Following the death of Malcolm X, Edmonds kept in touch with Betty Shabazz.[7] Edmond was a member and braintrust of the Organization of Afro-American Unity [8]

He was the author of the book, African History: An Illustrated Handbook, along with Earl Sweeting.[1] Edmonds covered the Harlem riot of 1964 via the Edmonds covered under the title "Harlem Diary:The Untold Story of the American Nightmare"[9][10] for Ramparts (magazine).[11] Edmonds covered the riots in great detail including police shootings.[2] Edmonds had access to many areas and held a United Nations press credential.[5] He appeared in the book "American Journalism, 1963-1973"[12] He also appeared as a subject in "Rampart Magazine."[13] Edmonds wrote "A Source Book of Karl Marx's Letters About Abraham Lincoln and His Strategic Goal in the Civil War: The Destratification of American Society" with Louis Gesualdi in 2014.[14]

The book "Do Not Hold Doors" by Jeffrey Dessources was written by the influences of Ishmael Reed, Cornel West, Jean Michel Basquiat, Eddie Glaude, Lez Edmond, and John Lowney.[15] He was also an influence in the making of The Souls of Black Girls, produced by Daphne S. Valerius.[16]

Edmonds serves on the St. John's University (New York City) faculty.[17] At St. John's he was a part of the Multicultural Advisory Committee.[18] He engaged with many basketball players including Ron Artest.[19] He expressed disappointment when Artest left early for the NBA.[20] He was a professor of the African American Studies and was a proponent of its Black Solidarity Day.[21] He was also an avid art collector.[22]

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