Say It Loud

A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF THE YEAR • A collection of provocative essays exploring the key social justice issues of our time—from George Floyd to antiracism to inequality and the Supreme Court. Kennedy is "among the most incisive American commentators on race" (The New York Times). Informed by sharpness of observation and often courting controversy, deep fellow feeling, decency, and wit, Say It Loud! includes: The George Floyd Moment: Promise and Peril • Isabel Wilkerson, the Election of 2020, and Racial Caste • The Princeton Ultimatum: Anti­racism Gone Awry • The Constitutional Roots of “Birtherism” • Inequality and the Supreme Court • “Nigger”: The Strange Career Contin­ues • Frederick Douglass: Everyone’s Hero • Remembering Thurgood Marshall • Why Clar­ence Thomas Ought to Be Ostracized • The Politics of Black Respectability • Policing Ra­cial Solidarity In each essay, Kennedy is mindful of com­plexity, ambivalence, and paradox, and he is always stirring and enlightening. Say It Loud! is a wide-ranging summa of Randall Kennedy’s thought on the realities and imaginaries of race in America.

A moving portrait of how black Americans have spoken out against injustice—with speeches by Thurgood Marshall, Shirley Chisholm, Jesse Jackson, and more. In “full-throated public oratory, the kind that can stir the soul”, this unique anthology collects the transcribed speeches of the twentieth century’s leading African American cultural, literary, and political figures, many never before available in printed form (Minneapolis Star-Tribune). From an 1895 speech by Booker T. Washington to Julian Bond’s sharp assessment of school segregation on the fiftieth anniversary of Brown v. Board in 2004, the collection captures a powerful tradition of oratory—by political activists, civil rights organizers, celebrities, and religious leaders—going back more than a century. Including the text of each speech with an introduction placing it in historical context, Say It Plain is a remarkable record—from the back-to-Africa movement to the civil rights era and the rise of black nationalism and beyond—conveying a struggle for freedom and a challenge to America to live up to its democratic principles. Includes speeches by: Mary McLeod Bethune Julian Bond Stokely Carmichael Shirley Chisholm Louis Farrakhan Marcus Garvey Jesse Jackson Martin Luther King Jr. Thurgood Marshall Booker T. Washington Walter White

Presents a tribute to the accomplishments of African American athletes who risked their well-being to promote social and legal changes, and includes coverage of such figures as Jesse Owens, Arthur Ashe, and Jackie Robinson.

Collects the text and audio recordings of famous African American political speeches, by individuals ranging from Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. to Condoleezza Rice and Barack Obama.

An empowering look at finding your voice, facing your fears, and standing up for what's right, from the author of Property of the Rebel Librarian. Charlotte Andrews is perfectly fine being quiet--in fact, she prefers it. When she doesn't speak, people can't make fun of her stutter. But when she witnesses bullying on the school bus and doesn't say anything, her silence comes between her and her best friend. As if that wasn't bad enough, her parents signed her up for musical theater. Charlotte doesn't want to speak onstage, but at least she doesn't stutter when she sings. Then, just as she starts to find her voice, the arts program is cut. Charlotte can't stay silent anymore. So she begins to write. Anonymous encouraging notes to her classmates. Letters to the school board to save the school musical. And an essay about the end of her best friendship--and her hope that she can still save it. Words could save Charlotte Andrews and everything she believes in . . . if she just believes in herself enough to speak up.

From the former editor-in-chief of Real Simple, enjoy this hilarious and deeply insightful take on the indignities of middle age and how to weather them with grace: "A pure pleasure to read" (Cathi Hanauer, author of Gone). ​ Do you hate the term “middle age?” So does Kristin van Ogtrop, who is still trying to come up with a less annoying way to describe those years when you find yourself both satisfied and outraged, confident and confused, full of appreciation but occasional disdain for the world around you. Like an intimate chat with your best friend, this mostly funny, sometimes sad, always affirming volume from longtime magazine journalist van Ogtrop is a celebration of that period of life when mild humiliations are significantly outweighed by a self-actualized triumph of the spirit. Finally! Featuring stories from her own life, as well as anecdotes from her unwitting friends and family, van Ogtrop encourages you to laugh at the small irritations of midlife: neglectful children, stealth insomnia, forks that try to kill you, t.v. remotes that won’t find Netflix, abdominal muscles that can’t seem to get the job done. But also to acknowledge the things you may have lost: innocence, unbridled optimism, smooth skin. Dear friends. Parents. It’s all here: the sublime and the ridiculous, living together in the pages of this book as they do in your heart, like a big messy family, in this no-better-term-for-it middle age.

When Don Rhodes took his seat not far behind Michael Jackson at the funeral of the “Godfather of Soul” on December 30, 2006, it marked the close of a forty-year friendship. In Say It Loud! Rhodes pays tribute to James Brown and his storied career, with a close and comprehensive look at the life of the legendary singer at his home in Augusta, Georgia, and the family he left behind. From the evolution of Brown's fiery, uniquely rhythmic musical style to his social activism, world travels, run-ins with the law, and four marriages (and uncertain number of affairs), Rhodes provides a sensitive but candid look at the life of the man behind such hits as “I Feel Good,” “Please, Please, Please,” “Sex Machine,” and “Say It Loud—I'm Black and I'm Proud.” He takes us back to the 1960s, when James Brown and other American soul and rock artists were relieved to find that they had nothing to fear from the Beatles and other British artists taking America by storm—indeed, as some of the Brits acknowledged, the Americans had inspired them. Mick Jagger, whose dance steps were influenced by Brown, once said of him, “His show didn't just have to do with the artist but had to do with the audience. . . . Their reaction was always . . . like being in a church.” Unlike his friend Elvis Presley, James Brown went on to be a frequent global traveler, adored by fans throughout the world. Say It Loud! bears out the reputation of the man with the famous cape as “the hardest-working man in show business,” bringing us the full story of a conscientious performer and consummate professional with a fascinating and controversial personal life. Never-before-published photos, as well as anecdotes from an enduring friendship and details of Brown's life at home, will further ensure that music fans of all ages will cherish this tribute to an American icon by a longtime friend.

A breakout media and political analyst delivers a sweeping snapshot of American Democracy and the role that African Americans have played in its shaping while offering concrete information to help harness the electoral power of the country’s rising majority and exposing political forces aligned to subvert and suppress Black voters. Black voters were critical to the Democrats’ 2018 blue wave. In fact, 90 percent of Black voters supported Democratic House candidates, compared to just 53 percent of all voters. Despite media narratives, this was not a fluke. Throughout U.S. history, Black people have played a crucial role in the shaping of the American experiment. Yet still, this powerful voting bloc is often dismissed as some “amorphous” deviation, argues Tiffany Cross. Say It Louder! is her explosive examination of how America’s composition was designed to exclude Black voters, but paradoxically would likely cease to exist without them. With multiple tentacles stretching into the cable news echo chamber, campaign leadership, and Black voter data, Cross creates a wrinkle in time with a reflective look at the timeless efforts endlessly attempting to deny people of color the right to vote—a basic tenet of American democracy. And yet as the demographics of the country are changing, so too is the electoral power construct—by evolution and by force, Cross declares. Grounded in the most-up-to-date research, Say It Louder! is a vital tool for a wide swath of constituencies.