New Books in African American Studies

David WilliamsView on Amazon[Cross-posted from New Books in History] Lincoln was very clear–at least in public–that the Civil War was not fought over slavery: it was, he said, for the preservation of the Union first and foremost. So it's not surprising that when the conflict started he had no firm plan to emancipate the slaves in the borderland or Southern states. He also knew that such a move might prove very unpopular in the North. So why did he issue the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863? There are many reasons. According to David Williams' fascinating new book I Freed Myself: African American Self-Emancipation in the Civil War Era (Cambridge University Press, 2014), an important and neglected one has to do with African American self-emancipation. After the war began, masses of slaves began to leave the South and head for the Northern lines. The Union forces received them as "contraband" seized from the enemy during wartime. As such, their status was uncertain. Many wanted to fight or at least serve as auxiliaries in the Union armies like freemen, but they were still seen as property. As Williams points out, the North certainly needed their manpower–as Lincoln knew better than anyone. Bearing this in mind, the President felt the time was propitious to do what he thought was right all along–free the slaves. Listen in.

View on Amazon[Cross-posted from New Books in Pop Music] The New York-based rock band Living Colour exploded into national consciousness in 1988 after their video for the thunderous "Cult of Personality" went into heavy rotation on MTV. Their album, Vivid, broke into the Billboard Top Ten and sold more than two million copies.  A worldwide tour followed, which included Los Angeles dates opening for the Rolling Stones and Guns and Roses. In subsequent years, the band enjoyed moderate success before breaking up for the first time in 1995. At first glance, the above account makes Living Colour sound like scores of other hard rock bands who enjoyed a period of broad popularity in the 1980s. But as Mark Prado ably demonstrates in Living Colour: Beyond the Cult of Personality (CreateSpace, 2014), Living Colour was no run of the mill rock act. The band was the first all-black rock group to enjoy massive commercial success since Jimi Hendrix's Band of Gypsys. The members of Living Colour were also fiercely political and spoke out regularly about issues of race and power in American life, which as Mark and I discuss, may have blunted the band's commercial success. Mark Prado is an award-winning reporter for the Marin Independent-Journal. He attended his first Living Colour concert in 1989 and has documented the band ever since. Readers can contact him at markprado2323@yahoo.com.

Christine KnauerView on Amazon[Cross-posted from New Books in American Studies] Recent controversies over integrating the military have focused on issues of gender and sexuality. In the 1940s and 50s, however, the issue was racial integration. As Christine Knauer shows in her new book Let Us Fight as Free Men: Black Soldiers and Civil Rights (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2014), the persistence of soldiers and activists of color forced the Truman administration to bar discrimination in the military. Even then, however, it took continued agitation — and the military crisis of the early days of the Korean War — to force the army to allow black soldiers to fight alongside their white brothers-in-arms. Let Us Fight as Free Men illuminates how agitation for Civil Rights did not begin with the Brown decision in 1954 or the Montgomery Bus Boycott several years later, but was a long-term struggle with its roots in the Second World War.

View on Amazon[Cross-posted from New Book in Language] In linguistics, we all happily and glibly affirm that there is no "better" or "worse" among languages (or dialects, or varieties), although we freely admit that people have irrational prejudices about them. But what do we do about those prejudices? And what do we think the speakers of low-status varieties of language should do to overcome them? Take the case of African American English. An influential approach, code-switching, advises teachers to help their AAE-speaking students to identify the systematic differences between their variety and the prestige variety ("Standard English"), and eventually to be able to switch effectively between both varieties according to the circumstances. However, although code-switching seems to promote communicative effectiveness, Vershawn Young and colleagues argue that that approach is inherently problematic. By effectively labelling AAE as inappropriate for public contexts, code-switching runs the risk of promoting and reinforcing society's prejudices against the language (and indeed its speakers). Young and colleagues offer an alternative vision for the multilingual classroom, which they refer to as "code-meshing", a process by which multiple varieties can sit side-by-side in a speaker's communicative repertoire. Their book, Other People's English: Code-Meshing, Code-Switching, and African American Literacy (Teacher's College Press, 2013), explores this concept in theoretical and practical detail, discussing the rationale for encouraging code-meshing, the effect of this on communicative abilities, and some of the ways in which code-switching can be and has been implemented in real-life teaching. In this interview, we discuss the effect of code-switching on the speaker's identity, the ubiquity of code-meshing across a range of actual discourse contexts, and some of the challenges that code-meshing might present in the classroom. And we consider why Barack Obama isn't criticised for code-meshing but Michelle Obama is.

Marc MyersView on Amazon[Cross-posted from New Books in Pop Music] How did jazz take shape? Why does jazz have so many styles? Why do jazz songs get longer as the twentieth century proceeds? Marc Myers, in his fascinating book Why Jazz Happened (University of California Press, 2014) examines the social and economic forces affected the growth of jazz between 1942 and 1972. Myers considers how the American Federation of Musicians ban on recording in 1942 changes the terrain for jazz musicians. He looks to how the G.I. Bill and suburbanization bring a new adult sophistication to the music. Myers also explores how changes in recording technology allow jazz artists a greater range of expression and permits the recording of longer songs and extended soloing. The book culminates with considering how jazz musicians responded to the challenge offered by rock music. Marc Myers is a writer for The Wall Street Journal and founder of the blog, JazzWax.com.

View on Amazon[Cross-posted from New Books in Sports] Each year, following the end of the NFL season, there is a blizzard of activity as teams with disappointing records fire their head coaches and look for the new leader who will turn things around.  This year, seven teams fired their coaches and spent the next weeks searching for a replacement among the pool of qualified candidates.  The league office imposes one rule on these searches: teams must interview at least one minority candidate for the head coaching position.  Established in 2003 by owners of NFL teams, the Rooney Rule was intended to give African American coaches a shot at top coaching positions, at a time when a majority of the league's players were black but only two of the 32 teams had a black coach.  More than a decade later, the effectiveness of the rule is still subject of debate.  Yes, two of seven teams hired new black coaches this year.  But the total number of black coaches in the league is only four, down from a high of seven in 2011.  And a look at fan sites shows that prejudice still rears its head, as some white fans will dismiss a black coaching candidate as a "Rooney interview." N. Jeremi Duru was part of the legal team that pressed the NFL to take more proactive steps in opening coaching opportunities for black coaches, and he now serves with the Fritz Pollard Alliance, an organization that promotes greater diversity in the league's coaching and management.  His book Advancing the Ball: Race, Reformation, and the Quest for Equal Coaching Opportunity in the NFL (Oxford University Press, 2011) looks at this campaign leading to the Rooney Rule.  Jeremi brings the perspective of an insider and a scholar.  In addition to his work as an attorney, Jeremi is a law professor and legal scholar who writes and teaches about a variety of issues in sports law.  In his book, he uncovers the obstacles that have historically kept African Americans from coaching and front-office positions in the NFL, and he evaluates the changes that have occurred since the Rooney Rule was implemented.  At a time when other leagues in the world are contemplating a similar step to remedy the lack of minority coaches, Jeremi's book offers valuable lessons on the formation of the Rooney Rule, the obstacles it has faced, and the successes it has achieved in the last decade.

Marcia Alesan DawkinsView on Amazon[Cross-posted from New Books in Pop Music] Who is Eminem? Is he a violent misogynist, another "white" performer imitating African American musical styles, or is he something else entirely? In her provocative book Eminem: The Real Slim Shady (Praeger, 2013), Marcia Alesan Dawkins offers a fresh look at Eminem and sees him as a cultural critic, spiritual seeker, and a polyethnic American. Her study examines Eminem's lyrics closely and helps us understand why he has been such a popular artist. In this interview, Dawkins explains the formative influences that have shaped Eminem's music. We also discuss how Dawkins reviewed all of his lyrics and coded them into categories. That research reveals how his music has grown and developed over his career. The interview culminates by considering Eminem's place within hip hop culture. Marcia Dawkins is an award-winning writer and speaker. She is a Professor at the University of Southern California and the author of Clearly Invisible: Racial Passing and the Color of Cultural Identity (2012).  She tracks trends in diversity, technology, culture, and communication for a variety of high-profile publications. Her expert opinion has been sought out by NPR, WABC-TV Boston and TIME Magazine. You can find out more information at her website, MarciaDawkins.com.

Kevin QuashieView on AmazonMusician James Brown is famous for his civil rights slogan, "Say it loud; I'm Black and I'm proud," illustrating the argument that Kevin Quashie makes in his new book The Sovereignty of Quiet: Beyond Resistance in Black Culture (Rutgers University Press, 2012)–that public expressiveness has become the dominant trope for thinking through and even theorizing blackness. As a result, public expressivity (think powerful oratory at mass demonstrations or spirited polemics, such as David Walker's Appeal) is linked to resistance. In fact, contemporary activist-scholars, such as Omi Osun Joni L. Jones, have called on others, particularly whites, to engage in this kind of public expressiveness associated with blacks. One of Jones' 6 Rules for Allies, encourages others "to be loud and crazy so black folk don't have to" (see http://vimeo.com/78945479). Jones is asking for allegiances that allow black folk time and space for quiet. Although what Jones advocates it still a necessity, Quashie presents a history and present of black folk engaging quiet, both with and without allies. In his provocative new study, Quashie expands and even challenges what it means to be loud and re-examines long held notions about double consciousness, the role of surrender vis a vis resistance, oratory as the most effective means of resistance, and the need to develop retrospection and cultivate interiority. No doubt his remarks during this interview will be of as much interest as the book.

Aram GoudsouzianView on Amazon[Cross-post from New Books in History] When I was a kid in the 1970s, I really didn't know anything about the "Civil Rights Movement." I knew who Martin Luther King was, and that he had been assassinated by white racists (I knew quite a few of those). But to me all that was old history. The issue of the day–at least as it concerned African Americans–was something called the "Black Power Movement." Of Rosa Parks, the Freedom Riders, and the Little Rock Nine I knew nothing. At the forefront of my mind were Stokley Carmichael, Huey Newton, and Bobby Seale. I followed the exploits of the Black Panthers. I read Eldridge Cleaver's Soul on Ice. I really understood none of it. I was a suburban white kid in the Midwest. The world these angry men described was foreign to me, but nonetheless fascinating. At what point did the Civil Rights Movement become the the Black Power Movement?  Aram Goudsouzian tries to answer this question in his terrific, readable book Down to the Crossroads: Civil Rights, Black Power, and the Meredith March Against Fear (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2014). Goudsouzian has a sharp eye for ironies, and the story he tells is full of them. James Meredith, the leader of the "march," didn't desire or plan a march at all; rather, he wanted to walk across Mississippi and thereby launch his political career. Martin Luther King never intended to take part in the "march" but was compelled to do so after Meredith was shot and his erstwhile political stunt morphed into a national spectacle. Stokely Carmichael was a regional black leader who was, much to his surprise, catapulted into the spotlight by a slogan he could not control–"Black Power." It's a fascinating story. Listen in.  

Adam HenigView on AmazonAlex Haley's 1976 book Roots: The Saga of an American Family still stands as a memorable epic journey into the history of African Americans during the enslavement period and after. The 1977 televised miniseries was a must-watch event of the day, and it remains an important production in television history. However, a little more than a decade after his success, Haley was in trouble. His wealth had dwindled and he had strained relationships with other writers. What happened? Adam Henig tells us in his new book Alex Haley's Roots: An Author's Odyssey (2014). Listen to this lively interview with the author.

Cindy HooperView on AmazonCindy Hooper is a veteran of various local, state, and national political campaigns. She is the founder of a national organization for African American women that is headquartered in Washington, D.C. Hooper is also a member of the American Political Science Association. Her new book, Conflict: African American Women and the New Dilemma of Race and Gender Politics (Praeger Press, 2012), draws on all of her experiences. Please listen to our lively exchange.  

Amy L. WoodView on AmazonHost Jonathan Judaken talks with author and professor Amy Wood about her book, Lynching and Spectacle: Witnessing Racial Violence in America, 1890-1940 (University of North Carolina Press, 2011). Wood discusses her book, the use of photography and media in the spectacle of lynching, religious justification for the practice, and the importance of honoring the legacies of anti-lynching Civil Rights Era leaders like Medgar Evers and Ida B. Wells.

Christina GreerView on Amazon[Cross-posted from New Books in Political Science] Christina Greer is the author of Black Ethnics: Race, Immigration, and the Pursuit of the American Dream (Oxford University Press, 2013). Greer is assistant professor of political science at Fordham University. In previous podcasts, authors have illuminated the immigrant experience of Latino and Asian Americans (Rouse, Masuoka and Junn), as well as the African American politics (Logan and Gillespie). Researchers have increasingly studied the opinions, political culture, and political institutions of each community. Greer uses this literature to explore an understudied population, who she dubs "Black Ethnics." Green analyzes the public opinion differences between African Americans, African immigrants, and Afro-Caribbean immigrants in New York City. She finds that Afro-Caribbean immigrants held some of the lowest opinions of the American Dream. Their collective frustration with a lack of opportunities placed them below African Americans and African immigrants.

Nathaniel MillettView on Amazon[Cross-posted from New Books in American Studies] This is a very timely book, coming as it does in the midst of the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812 — the war that gave birth to the maroon community of Prospect Bluff, Florida. In his book The Maroons of Prospect Bluff and their Quest for Freedom in the Atlantic World (UP of Florida, 2013), Nathaniel Millett shows how an assortment of free African-Americans, escaped slaves, Africans, and Afro-Indians created a thriving, highly organized community in the shadow of the expanding slave empire of the southwestern United States. Inspired by the singular figure of Edward Nichols, and Irish-born British officer of staunch anti-slavery convictions, the men and women of Prospect Bluff forged a community that realized their deepest understandings of freedom in the midst of the era of Atlantic revolutions.

Julia H. LeeView on Amazon[Cross-posted from New Books in Asian American Studies] Julia H. Lee is the author of Interracial Encounters: Reciprocal Representations in African and Asian American Literatures, 1896-1937 (New York University Press, 2011). Dr. Lee is an Assistant Professor in the department of Asian American Studies at the University of California, Irvine. Interracial Encounters investigates the overlapping of African American and Asian American literature. By focusing on the diverse attitudes that blacks and Asian Americans had towards each other, Dr. Lee pushes against dominant conceptions of these groups as either totally cooperative or as totally antagonistic. Lee also explores how American nationalism was produced through this comparison, and shows how Afro-Asian representations allowed readers and writers to consider alliances outside of the American nation-state.