This is a groundbreaking work of African American proletarian literature, first published in 1951 and now back in print. "Iron City" is based on an actual court case and inspired by the author's experiences as a labor organizer and political prisoner. This well-crafted novel tells the story of Lonnie James, a black youth falsely convicted of - and sentenced to death for - the murder of a white businessman. From inside the "iron city" of a state penitentiary in a northern steel town, three black Communist prisoners spearhead a fight to save Lonnie James's life. In advancing the author's controversial socialist vision of black and white proletarian solidarity, "Iron City" unflinchingly confronts race relations in mid-twentieth-century America inside and outside prison walls.

Foreword by: Alan Wald