'Bitter with the Past But Sweet with the Dream': Communism in the African American Imaginary

Most literary critics take it for granted that mid-century African-American writers considered the Communist movement to be incapable of comprehending and responding to racial oppression. In this groundbreaking study, Cathy Bergin argues that in Native Son, Lonely Crusade, and Invisible Man, Communist organizations were castigated for their refusal to pursue the liberatory potential contained in their own ideals and strategies for change.