Al Sharpton

View the third session in our free Fall Leadership Lecture series: Civil rights leader Al Sharpton talks with Alicia Garza, co-founder of Black Lives Matter, about his new book Rise Up and offers contemporary lessons for anyone who’s stood at the crossroads of their personal or political life, weighing their choices of how to proceed.

On October 1, 2021, the civil-rights leader revisited the highlights of the Obama administration, and the 2016 election and Trump’s subsequent hold on the GOP, and shared his decades-long experience with other key players in politics and activism, including Shirley Chisholm, Hillary Clinton, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and more.

His unique American journey has led him to prominence as a preacher, politician, television and radio host, and civil-rights leader. His enduring ability and willingness to take on the political power structure makes him the preeminent voice for our era, a time unprecedented in its challenges.

Rise Up: Confronting a Country at the Crossroads begins with a foreword by Michael Eric Dyson and closes with Sharpton’s moving eulogy for George Floyd. Just released, Rise Up offers timeless lessons for anyone who’s stood at the crossroads of their personal or political life, weighing their choices of how to proceed.