Reviews tagging 'Police brutality'

Następnym razem pożar by James Baldwin

18 reviews

novella42's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Racism, Colonisation, Hate crime, Police brutality, Slavery, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Genocide, Alcohol, Murder, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Islamophobia, and War

Minor: Rape, Sexism, Xenophobia, Alcoholism, and Homophobia

jwells's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective

We should be mentioning James Baldwin every time someone makes a list of the great American writers. He's so wise and compassionate, so insightful and so eloquent. I only wish this book wasn't still so fresh and relevant as it was when it was written.
As an aside, I almost died when he was talking to the kid from the separatist movement.
Baldwin: So, when all the black people move out of the U.S., and form a new Black Muslim country, what will the economy of this new Black Muslim country be based on? Is there a plan for that?
The kid: *blank stare*
(Apparently no one but Baldwin thought to ask about that kind of thing...) LOL

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

Minor: Alcoholism, Police brutality, War, Addiction, Drug abuse, Rape, and Slavery

I feel like we need two tags for racism, sometimes. One for a book that is racist, and another for a book that sensitively discusses racism from the perspective of a person of color trying to educate. This is the latter. It describes racism in a way that is uncomfortable to read, but it's an absolute classic for a reason.

thewordsdevourer's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

3.25

a succinct, reflective, nod-inviting, oft thought-provoking and searing read, the fire next time offers an insightful personal window into baldwin yet reflects america's deep-rooted structural problem of white patriarchy as a whole. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Racism, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Death, Police brutality, Child abuse, Slavery, Murder, and Islamophobia

Minor: Sexism

samugranjo's review against another edition

hopeful informative reflective

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Child abuse, Colonisation, Emotional abuse, Police brutality, and Slavery

Minor: Sexual violence and Drug use

jessereadsthings's review against another edition

informative fast-paced

3.0

Not my favorite Baldwin, but a really interesting book. Need to reread in future.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, and Police brutality

Moderate: Slavery

Minor: Alcoholism and Genocide

the_vegan_bookworm's review against another edition

reflective fast-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Racial slurs, and Racism

Moderate: Slavery and Religious bigotry

mattyvreads's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective slow-paced

5.0

One of the most important pieces of literature ever written. It is comprehensive, straightforward, and thought-provoking. Baldwin is a master of his craft.

This is the first Baldwin essay I ever read, and I was breath-taken. He remains one of my favorite authors of all time. 

The fact that this essay is written as a letter to his nephew adds yet another layer of humanity and emotionality. 

It is horrifying to realize the depth of this essay’s relevance 60 years after it’s publication. It is  inconceivable.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism and Racial slurs

Moderate: Religious bigotry and Police brutality

Minor: Homophobia

james1star's review against another edition

informative inspiring medium-paced

5.0

This was my first work by James Baldwin and will certainly not be the last. In these two essays/letters, he perfectly explains the ‘racial nightmare’ in America with such brutal honestly and rawness. It starts with a letter to his then fifteen year old nephew James telling him of his current place in American society as a young black man and how despite being destined to the gutter, he must accept himself and aspire for a better life. Then a much longer piece tells the reader of Baldwin’s experiences of growing up in Harlem with the many racial injustices, his interactions with religion (Christianity and later the Nation of Islam movement) and how we as a society much think about things differently to ever move forward. There are maybe some convoluted or slightly tangental passages but this adds to the human-ness and honesty he puts forward - it’s like he’s talking to you, sharing his thoughts and wisdom… amazing. At its heart, ‘The Fire Next Time’ is a plea to end the legacy of racial injustice that plagued (and still does) America at the time of writing in 1963 and was influential in the growing civil rights movement. Additionally, Baldwin’s grasp on the human condition is put forward with a pin-point accuracy that you can’t help but sit back and take a few moments to really take in. It may seem hard and a little preachy to some extent, but his message of love overcoming hate is what we should be aspiring to. The book has many well penned quotes/passages but these were my favourites - I am likely going to give this a reread and make more notes. 

‘But what was the point, the purpose, of my salvation if it did not permit me to behave with love towards others, no matter how they behaved towards me?’

“I love a few people and they love me and some of them are white, and isn't love more important than colour?” 

‘Life is tragic simply because the earth turns and the sun inexorably rises and sets, and one day, for each of us, the sun will go down for the last, last time. Perhaps the whole root of our trouble, the human trouble, is that we will sacrifice all the beauty of our lives, will imprison ourselves in totems, taboos, crosses, blood sacrifices, steeples, mosques, races, armies, flags, nations, in order to deny the fact of death, which is the only fact we have. It seems to me that one ought to rejoice in the fact of death - ought to decide, indeed, to earn one's death by confronting with passion the conundrum of life. One is responsible to life: It is the small beacon in that terrifying darkness from which we come and to which we shall' return. One must negotiate this passage as nobly as possibly, for the sake of those who are coming after us.’

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

Moderate: Racial slurs

Minor: Slavery, Police brutality, Hate crime, and Religious bigotry

jaiari12's review against another edition

challenging reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Police brutality, Violence, and Racism

milesjmoran's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Colonisation, Racial slurs, Racism, and Police brutality