Self-published in 1899 and sold door-to-door by the author, this classic African-American novel - a gripping exploration of oppression, miscegenation, exploitation, and black empowerment - was a major bestseller in its day. The dramatic story of a conciliatory black man and a mulatto nationalist who grow up in a racist America and are driven to join a radical movement dedicated to the creation of an all-black nation in Texas, Imperium in Imperio had a profound influence on the development of black nationalism.Author of the Preface:A. J. Verdelle, lecturer in the creative writing program at Princeton, is the author of The Good Negress.Introducer: Cornel West, University Professor of Religion at Princeton, is the author of Race Matters and The American Evasion of Philosophy, and is the co-author of The Future of American Progressivism.