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Stamped from the Beginning: A Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America
Zusammenfassung
WINNER OF THE 2016 NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FOR NONFICTION
A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER IN RACE AND CIVIL RIGHTS
FINALIST FOR THE 2016 NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD FOR NONFICTION
THE MOST AMBITIOUS BOOK OF 2016 —The Washington Post
A BOSTON GLOBE BEST BOOK OF 2016
A WASHINGTON POST NOTABLE BOOK OF 2016
A CHICAGO REVIEW OF BOOKS BEST NONFICTION BOOK OF 2016
A ROOT BEST BOOK OF 2016
A BUZZFEED BEST NONFICTION BOOK OF 2016
A BUSTLE BEST BOOK OF 2016
NOMINATED FOR 2016 NAACP IMAGE AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING LITERARY WORK OF NONFICTION
A KIRKUS BEST HISTORY BOOK OF 2016
A KIRKUS BEST BOOK OF 2016 TO EXPLAIN CURRENT POLITICS
A KIRKUS BEST HEARTRENDING NONFICTION BOOK of 2016
AN ENTROPY BEST NONFICTION BOOK OF 2016
THE WASHINGTON POST 2016 SUMMER READING LIST
Some Americans cling desperately to the myth that we are living in a post-racial society, that the election of the first Black president spelled the doom of racism. In fact, racist thought is alive and well in America--more sophisticated and more insidious than ever. And as award-winning historian Ibram X. Kendi argues in Stamped from the Beginning, if we have any hope of grappling with this stark reality, we must first understand how racist ideas were developed, disseminated, and enshrined in American society.
In this deeply researched and fast-moving narrative, Kendi chronicles the entire story of anti-Black racist ideas and their staggering power over the course of American history. Stamped from the Beginning uses the life stories of five major American intellectuals to offer a window into the contentious debates between assimilationists and segregationists and between racists and antiracists. From Puritan minister Cotton Mather to Thomas Jefferson, from fiery abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison to brilliant scholar W.E.B. Du Bois to legendary anti-prison activist Angela Davis, Kendi shows how and why some of our leading proslavery and pro-civil rights thinkers have challenged or helped cement racist ideas in America.
Contrary to popular conceptions, racist ideas did not arise from ignorance or hatred. Instead, they were devised and honed by some of the most brilliant minds of each era. These intellectuals used their brilliance to justify and rationalize deeply entrenched discriminatory policies and the nation's racial disparities in everything from wealth to health. And while racist ideas are easily produced and easily consumed, they can also be discredited. In shedding much-needed light on the murky history of racist ideas, Stamped from the Beginning offers us the tools we need to expose them--and in the process, gives us reason to hope.
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Rezensionen
Really good, cogent overview that gives clear throughlines and a great framework for understanding American racism and analyzing ideas we come across today. Learned a lot, and got an overall view that connects other more specific things I've read. The author does an excellent job of keeping on the intersections, too, calling out 'gender-racism', 'class-racism' and more: he's exacting in considering the justice of anti-racists and their blind spots as well as criticizing assimilationists and segregationists.
Audiobook note: The reading was okay, but occasionally emphasis patterns contradicted the actual meaning of the sentence or a similar word was substituted in for what must have been meant -- I think it wasn't prepared much before being recorded. It's a decent way to absorb the information (although I had to back up to catch statistics, of course) but I wouldn't recommend it over reading the text.
Audiobook note: The reading was okay, but occasionally emphasis patterns contradicted the actual meaning of the sentence or a similar word was substituted in for what must have been meant -- I think it wasn't prepared much before being recorded. It's a decent way to absorb the information (although I had to back up to catch statistics, of course) but I wouldn't recommend it over reading the text.
A must listen to learn, reflect, and live differently. Incredible!
Such an important book. Recommend to everyone.
My only regret with this book is that I had to read it so fast because a queue of people are waiting to read it at the library and I cannot renew. But that's a good thing because the more widely this is read the better - and I shall revisit the book when I can. I feel Ibram Kendi has given me the beginnings of a feel for the history of the USA and the impact of that on the day-to-day news I read. I shall now re-read the epilogue and return the book.
Would you consider taking all of the millions of America's black people and exiling them to Africa a racist idea? Would your answer change if you knew half of the faces on Mount Rushmore belong to national leaders who where strong advocates of doing just that? This book is subtitled, "The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America". The author first intended to write a book about the history of the origins of Black Studies in American higher education, a book certain to be a best seller with lots of box office revenue from the subsequent movie, no doubt. Oh, well, let's just make things easier by merely defining the expanse of racial thought in America. The reader might actually start out thinking this will be kept short and sweet by the author (1) distinguishing between racist, antiracist, and the unsung assimilationists, and (2) dividing the book into five sections. I was going to say five sections concentrating on five individual Americans, but they don't "concentrate" on them. Cotton Mather (1663-1728), Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), William Lloyd Garrison (1805-1879), W.E.B. Du Bois (1868-1963), and Angela Davis (1943-present), may be known, if not well known, to many present day Americans, but, as such, the author does not make each section into mini-biographies of the five people. The discussion of each is less as personal histories or as a focal point in time, and more as a reference point to the dominant or maybe just one of many key thoughts during America's history. In each section, other well known and many more barely known individuals get discussed. If there is anything the author is, it is very, very thorough. For instance, you may have known that Voltaire, John Locke, and Ben Franklin, all contributed to racist thought in their time, but I did not. Since many Americans at any given time, struggle to name their nation's current Vice President, I'm guessing most folks are with me on being caught unaware. Indeed, the author may overwhelm some readers with the depth of his scholarship. And the variations on racial thought never stop coming forward. But no worries. Think of the instant replay in sports. Was the runner easily safe stealing the base despite the umpire's call? Was the touchdown catch bobbled just as the receiver crossed into the end zone? The author pulls out the camera recordings from every conceivable angle and lays out the ultimate answers. Absolutely no stone is left undisturbed. Will this book compete with "The Help" as a popular book on racial thought? No, and that's a huge shame, because I challenge any potential reader to not unearth some new view, or many views, on the subject that will haunt them for a lifetime, or at least until it's been fully absorbed into their psyche.
Jarring yet necessary! This book should be required reading for any US History class.
A massive and well researched study on the history of racism in America. The author has centered on five historical figures from different eras with many side stories, They are Cotton Mather, Thomas Jefferson, William Lloyd Garrison, W. E. B. DuBois and Angela Davis. I have been teaching college level history for over twenty five years and I learned so much from this book. There are assimilationists and segregationists. There are blatant racists and people who feel they aren't but are in more subtle ways. This is a really important book to understand our country's story.
Stamped From the Beginning The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, by Ibram X. Kendi (read 26 Nov 2016) (National Book Award Nonfiction prizein 2016) This is the 37thwinner of the National Book award for nonfiction I have read. The author is passionate about combating racism so he is very condemnatory of people who exhibit racist views--so this is not 'objective' history. And he sees things as racist which a less astute observer might not find to be racist. He is more pessimistic about race than I am and I appreciate the strides against racism which have been made in my lifetime. I well remember the viciously racist speeches which used to be common in Congress (in my younger days I read much in the Congressional Record, and cringed as I read speeches by guys like James Eastland and Theodore Bilbo and their like). I think persuasion and reason can do much to overcome racism--the author thinks such ineffectual. So I admit I did not like the book overly much, though no doubt the author's view is a valid one.
4.5 stars.A tabbed this book up so much. Everyone needs to read this, as it examines how every side of our history here in the United States helped racist ideas to develop into what they are today. This is a must read.
Tremendously important, essential reading. If I were a teacher of American history or social studies, I'd probably start my students with Anderson's White Rage and follow that up with this remarkable history of the generation and promulgation of racist ideas. Can't recommend this book highly enough.