Hutchinson is a longtime commentator on national affairs who was born and bred in Chicago and South Los Angeles. For the past two decades he's also brought his acumen as a journalist to community organizing -- holding public officials' feet to the fire on police misconduct, racial discrimination in employment, racial profiling and a host of other major topical issues. In "From King to Obama" Hutchinson applies his considerable skills as a political analyst and observer to this retrospective appraisal of movers and shakers on the American sociopolitical landscape. My personal favorite is his rendering of Bob Marley who, at the time of his interview with Hutchinson, was largely unknown in the U.S. Hutchinson's reflections on Marley's fierce political consciousness and radicalism are richly textured. Similarly, his portrayals of King, Malcolm X and other seminal folk provide a depth of context which underscore how the inequities of the "past" are still very much a factor in the present. Oddly, the only thing I would have liked to have seen more of in this book is more substantive detail about Hutchinson's life and upbringing.
