Woke Racism: How a New Religion Has Betrayed Black America (Unabridged)
-
-
4.4 • 178 Ratings
-
-
- $12.99
-
- $12.99
Publisher Description
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
New York Times bestselling author and acclaimed linguist John McWhorter argues that an illiberal neoracism, disguised as antiracism, is hurting Black communities and weakening the American social fabric.
Americans of good will on both the left and the right are secretly asking themselves the same question: how has the conversation on race in America gone so crazy? We’re told to read books and listen to music by people of color but that wearing certain clothes is “appropriation.” We hear that being white automatically gives you privilege and that being Black makes you a victim. We want to speak up but fear we’ll be seen as unwoke, or worse, labeled a racist. According to John McWhorter, the problem is that a well-meaning but pernicious form of antiracism has become, not a progressive ideology, but a religion—and one that’s illogical, unreachable, and unintentionally neoracist.
In Woke Racism, McWhorter reveals the workings of this new religion, from the original sin of “white privilege” and the weaponization of cancel culture to ban heretics, to the evangelical fervor of the “woke mob.” He shows how this religion that claims to “dismantle racist structures” is actually harming his fellow Black Americans by infantilizing Black people, setting Black students up for failure, and passing policies that disproportionately damage Black communities. The new religion might be called “antiracism,” but it features a racial essentialism that’s barely distinguishable from racist arguments of the past.
Fortunately for Black America, and for all of us, it’s not too late to push back against woke racism. McWhorter shares scripts and encouragement with those trying to deprogram friends and family. And most importantly, he offers a roadmap to justice that actually will help, not hurt, Black America.
Customer Reviews
How to Alienate Your Target Audience?
Having read (listened to) this twice, I cannot help but notice the author’s somewhat biased opinion of religion in general. Although this book serves as a wonderful wake up call to this new wave of antiracism and a great outline of its methodology, it also serves as an explicit example of the author’s disdain for religion. I have read other examples of the author’s work and have enjoyed them immensely but unfortunately his heavy handedness and decidedly biased manner of comparing the structure of the new anti-woke movement to established religions will probably do more to alienate those who otherwise would be a amenable to his comparison of the analogous nature of anti-racist Wokeness but completely put off by his in-depth grinding of the tenets of their religion.
I believe it could have been equally effective to compare the structures of establish religion with the structure of this new anti-woke movement without seeking to denigrate the specific beliefs of religious adherents. The author comes off as not only disdainful of religion but as mean. This serves only to make one wonder if the author is not, in a sense, exorcising the remnants of an uncomfortable brush of his own with establish religions. Confusingly, in this book, John McWhorter comes off as both enlightening and vindictive.
A soothing balm
Excellent book, MAGA makes me uncomfortable and so does WOKE. We are easily living through one of the most insane eras of human history since the industrial and agrarian revolutions, and this book is a soothing balm for those of us who don’t like getting sucked into the insanity ourselves. MAGA is insane and so is WOKE.
Enjoyed a Different & Important Perspective
I consider myself to be a conservative leftist. Someone who believes deeply that all people deserve freedom of speech, medical autonomy and the privilege to not be prejudged. However I personally needed to read this book specifically because as a black female millennial, it’s very easy for me to ignore other peoples opinions on race especially from a white perspective. This book was difficult at times to accept as truth but then I had to step back and say “No, this is the authors truth” and that’s what this book is teaching: that universal truth is a hard sell if everyone has an opinion based upon their own experiences. Just because you don’t agree with someone doesn’t make them wrong and doesn’t mean you need to shame them or take away their livelihood just so that they agree with your “religion”. I am not religious but I was. I’m fact, I used to be in a religious Christian cult… so trust me when I tell you, the way that leftists are behaving is Cult-like and unsettling and dangerous. I don’t want to live in a world where people aren’t permitted to have varying opinions, nor do I want people to judge me based on my brown skin. Which do I have more control over? The censorship of people who don’t agree with you is a dangerous precedent to set. I used to be afraid to live in Red America but now I realize red and blue are equally extreme. Obviously there are violent racists in each political party but the point is, there are good people too who want to create a safe and kinder world but we (the masses) are incentivized to hate each other. I could go on and on but I won’t.
The book was very good. At times I believe the author is preaching respectability politics which means if you behave, speak and conduct your business in a certain way, this will garner respect for yourself and your race. I don’t necessarily agree but I definitely understand where the sentiment is coming from since he had the privilege of growing up with access to private education. I do think his 3 solutions are an excellent beginning and unfortunately I do believe the culture that many black American lower class people cling to is that of the perpetual victim. It’s almost impossible not to feel hopeless growing up in some poor black neighborhoods. HOWEVER I agree that it’s a cultural issue non the less.
I would like the author to expand upon how we might be able to change the cultural mindset of black people. Personally I think it starts in MEDIA!!!
Thank you John. Great job
Listeners Also Bought