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A review by saucy_bookdragon
Freedom Is a Constant Struggle: Ferguson, Palestine, and the Foundations of a Movement by Angela Y. Davis
challenging
hopeful
informative
reflective
fast-paced
4.0
A collection of essays, interviews, and speeches by Angela Y. Davis on a range of topics related to justice and liberation, particularly anti-Black racism, Palestine, and the civil rights movement.
It's accessible and well written, I'd be interested to know if this book has persuaded anyone further left. I wasn't very persuaded because going in I already agreed with most of Davis's views, but I did find it very educational, especially in regards to the civil rights movement and the radical reconstruction era immediately after the civil war. I also appreciated how she discussed intersectionality in how various struggles are interconnected with each other.
The nature of this being assorted writings means it gets a bit repetitive after awhile and that it doesn't always go as in depth as I would've wanted. I'd love to hear more about what her vision of a prison-free world is and active steps that can be taken to freeing Palestine.
I also disagree with some of her takes on Obama, though maybe it is just the nature of reading this book in 2024. She criticizes the idea that Obama signaled a post-racial America, but did also view his win being a step in the right direction and him as someone who could've caused greater change for good. Though I remember this very much being a sentiment of hope during his presidency, it's hard to reconcile going somewhat-easy on him in a book that also discusses Palestine given during his presidency he did continue support for Israel and to this day is an outspoken Zionist. He also did actively continue terrorizing the Middle East in general. There is also the added effect of hindsight given after his presidency we had the hell that was Trump's administration, showing that he was not as effective in changing the U.S. as we had all hoped.
Though I have my critiques of Freedom Is A Constant Struggle, I do think it's an important book that should be read by people interested in activism and leftist politics. There's a lot of food for thought in it and it provides a lot of important context to politics. It's especially important now given how much larger the free Palestine movement has grown, though perhaps take the sections about Obama with a grain of salt. I'm interested in reading more from and about Davis, as well as reading more theory in general.
It's accessible and well written, I'd be interested to know if this book has persuaded anyone further left. I wasn't very persuaded because going in I already agreed with most of Davis's views, but I did find it very educational, especially in regards to the civil rights movement and the radical reconstruction era immediately after the civil war. I also appreciated how she discussed intersectionality in how various struggles are interconnected with each other.
The nature of this being assorted writings means it gets a bit repetitive after awhile and that it doesn't always go as in depth as I would've wanted. I'd love to hear more about what her vision of a prison-free world is and active steps that can be taken to freeing Palestine.
I also disagree with some of her takes on Obama, though maybe it is just the nature of reading this book in 2024. She criticizes the idea that Obama signaled a post-racial America, but did also view his win being a step in the right direction and him as someone who could've caused greater change for good. Though I remember this very much being a sentiment of hope during his presidency, it's hard to reconcile going somewhat-easy on him in a book that also discusses Palestine given during his presidency he did continue support for Israel and to this day is an outspoken Zionist. He also did actively continue terrorizing the Middle East in general. There is also the added effect of hindsight given after his presidency we had the hell that was Trump's administration, showing that he was not as effective in changing the U.S. as we had all hoped.
Though I have my critiques of Freedom Is A Constant Struggle, I do think it's an important book that should be read by people interested in activism and leftist politics. There's a lot of food for thought in it and it provides a lot of important context to politics. It's especially important now given how much larger the free Palestine movement has grown, though perhaps take the sections about Obama with a grain of salt. I'm interested in reading more from and about Davis, as well as reading more theory in general.