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Super Bowl Champion and three-time Pro Bowler Bennett is an outspoken proponent for social justice--and a man without a censor.nsor.
About the author
Michael Bennett is a three-time Pro Bowler, Pro Bowl MVP, Super Bowl Champion, and two-time NFC Champion. He has gained international recognition for his public support for the Black Lives Matter Movement, women's rights, and other social justice causes. In 2017, he was named one of the 100 Most Influential African Americans by
The Root, was the Seattle Seahawks nominee for the NFL's Walter Payton Man of the Year award, and was honored along with his brother Martellus with a BET Shine a Light award for exceptional service. He is the cofounder with Pele Bennett of The Bennett Foundation, which educates underserved children and communities through free, accessible programming. He has held free camps and health clinics in Seattle, in his hometown of Houston, in his current offseason home, Honolulu, and in South Dakota on the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe. He donates all of his endorsement money and the proceeds from his jersey sales to fund health and education projects for poor and underserved youth and minority communities, and recently expanded his reach globally to support STEM programming in Africa.
Dave Zirin is the sports editor for the
Nation and the author of several books, most recently
Brazil's Dance with the Devil. Named one of
UTNE Reader's "Fifty Visionaries Who Are Changing Our World," Zirin is a frequent guest on
MSNBC,
ESPN, and
Democracy Now! He hosts
WPFW's The Collision with Etan Thomas and has been called "the best sportswriter in the United States," by Robert Lipsyte.
Summary
Super Bowl Champion and three-time Pro Bowler Michael Bennett is an outspoken proponent for social justice and a man without a censor.
Foreword
- National Print Campaign: ESPN, Sports Illustrated, Seattle Weekly, LA Times, NY Times, New York Review of Books, SF Chronicle, Mother Jones, The Nation, Washington Post, Wall St Journal, Associated Press, among many others
- Trades: Publisher's Weekly, Booklist, Kirkus, Library Journal, Young Adult trade publications
- National TV & Radio Campaign: Newshour with Jim Lehrer, MSNBC Rachel Maddow, MSNBC Chris Hayes, Daily Show, Democracy Now!, Tavis Smiley TV & Radio, NPR shows as appropriate (Tell Me More), C-SPAN Book TV, Tom Joyner Radio Show, David Sirota, Fresh Air, CBC-The Current, GRIT TV with Laura Flanders
- Podcasts: Edge of Sports, Politically ReActive, Jacobin
- Pitch interviews & reviews to: Christian Science Monitor, Shelf Awareness, Black Agenda Report, NPR.org, Alternet, Truthout, Root, Racialicious, Firedog Lake, Huffington Post, Counterpunch
- Promote on social media: Michael Bennett has Facebook 31K fans and 230K Twitter followers and is very active on Twitter
- Promotion through his website: https://www.michaelbennettbook.com
- Limited book events with author in fall, author based in Philadelphia
Additional text
“Michael Bennett is an agent of change.”
—The New York Times
“A shockingly honest take on sports and politics.”
—The Stanger
“This book is a courageous and compassionate story of a great athlete and grand human being full of deep care for his fellow citizens! Don't miss it!”
—Cornel West
“It would be easy for Michael Bennett to remain silent, to play in the NFL and make his mark through accomplishments on the field. Instead Michael has chosen to use his voice and his platform to fight injustice.”
—Senator Bernie Sanders
“There is a tradition of athletes who understand that sports is a way to reach people and change the world. I am proud and humbled to be recognized as part of that tradition. I believe that Michael Bennett's name deserves mention alongside the best of us. This book doesn't only explain the roots of Michael Bennett's courage. It will inspire the people who read it to conquer their fears and fight for what's right.”
—Dr. John Carlos, 1968 Olympic medalist
“I was going to say this is the most courageous books on race written by an athlete in my lifetime, but I actually think this is one of the most courageous books on race and racism in America that has ever been written by anyone. It’s that good and that important.”
—Shaun King, columnist for The Intercept and writer-in-residence for Harvard Law School’s Fair Punishment Project
“There is a revolution underway inside professional sports and Michael Bennett is at ground zero. In this revelatory book, he puts everything on the line to share the reasons, strategy, pain and deep thought behind this historic uprising. And he invites us into a vision of justice and liberation that is simply irresistible. This book is pure fire.”
—Naomi Klein, author of No Is Not Enough
