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A review by emmaraeempowered
The Essential Dick Gregory by Dick Gregory
informative
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
I picked this up because I realized I don't know much about Dick Gregory... I knew he was a comedian and an activist but that's it. I own a copy of his book Nigger, but I haven't ever read it. So when I saw The Essential Dick Gregory available on Libby I immediately checked it out!
This book is a grouping of Gregory's writings, speeches, and interviews. It begins with reflections of his childhood and then progresses to his young adult and adult life. I think a fascinating aspect is how he began life being an athlete. He was a cross country runner and had ran in college. The preforming came later. As his rise to fame came within his hard and diligent work being a comedian he then slowly became an activist. But in early interviews he wasn't categorizing himself as such. He was just standing up for what he knew was right. Still using humor to speak to people in large quantities he began speaking at colleges and having discussions with people about being aware with what was happening in the USA as well as the world. He worked with greats like Malcom X and Martin Luther King Jr. He was jailed numerous times, but he kept fighting. No matter how his life morphed into what can be called unexpected he knew what was right and used his voice and platform to keep it in front of people.
It was inspiring to hear him talk about being the first big Black comedians. How he worked to preform in clubs and keep his material relevant. In one interview he said that all comedians should read newspapers everyday that way they know what to talk to the people about. I paused for a moment because it made me think how today people often scoff when a comedian "brings politics into things". But that has always been the case! Comedians have always been there to comment on what is going on in the world, it hasn't always been "I hate my wife" jokes.
Anyway, Dick Gregory's life morphed again when he began taking his health into consideration. He went vegetarian for a while but was still smoking 4 packs a day and drinking a lot. He soon learned about fasting, juicing, and being vegan. This transformed his life and others as he began teaching importance of fasting and also using fasting as a form of protest. He would fast for 100+ days!! He sold vitamin products that were kelp based (and maybe still sold today I'm not sure).
His writing was extremely impactful and there's so much I learned about the Civil Rights Movement throughout this book. I'm so glad that I saw this and picked it up. Though I read it on my Kindle I was highlighting a ton and having many moments of reflection. The biggest being whenever he spoke about how the government promotes hate, and government agencies that are out killing people who speak out., the other atrocities that are happening in the world and how we need to stand up and take action against what is right. To be reading this in 2024 and thinking of how the US vetoed the ceasefire in Gaza, how the people of Congo are being tortured as they mine for Tesla and other huge tech companies who pay them nothing and don't care for their lives, I just think of all the violence that is happening around the world...the list continues and continues and its a shame that a lot of what he was speaking about in his book are things that are still happening.
I think this is an important read and one that can inspire and fuel a person. I know I feel fueled to make sure I am standing up for what is right and doing all that I can to use the power and stage that I have to do something good.
This book is a grouping of Gregory's writings, speeches, and interviews. It begins with reflections of his childhood and then progresses to his young adult and adult life. I think a fascinating aspect is how he began life being an athlete. He was a cross country runner and had ran in college. The preforming came later. As his rise to fame came within his hard and diligent work being a comedian he then slowly became an activist. But in early interviews he wasn't categorizing himself as such. He was just standing up for what he knew was right. Still using humor to speak to people in large quantities he began speaking at colleges and having discussions with people about being aware with what was happening in the USA as well as the world. He worked with greats like Malcom X and Martin Luther King Jr. He was jailed numerous times, but he kept fighting. No matter how his life morphed into what can be called unexpected he knew what was right and used his voice and platform to keep it in front of people.
It was inspiring to hear him talk about being the first big Black comedians. How he worked to preform in clubs and keep his material relevant. In one interview he said that all comedians should read newspapers everyday that way they know what to talk to the people about. I paused for a moment because it made me think how today people often scoff when a comedian "brings politics into things". But that has always been the case! Comedians have always been there to comment on what is going on in the world, it hasn't always been "I hate my wife" jokes.
Anyway, Dick Gregory's life morphed again when he began taking his health into consideration. He went vegetarian for a while but was still smoking 4 packs a day and drinking a lot. He soon learned about fasting, juicing, and being vegan. This transformed his life and others as he began teaching importance of fasting and also using fasting as a form of protest. He would fast for 100+ days!! He sold vitamin products that were kelp based (and maybe still sold today I'm not sure).
His writing was extremely impactful and there's so much I learned about the Civil Rights Movement throughout this book. I'm so glad that I saw this and picked it up. Though I read it on my Kindle I was highlighting a ton and having many moments of reflection. The biggest being whenever he spoke about how the government promotes hate, and government agencies that are out killing people who speak out., the other atrocities that are happening in the world and how we need to stand up and take action against what is right. To be reading this in 2024 and thinking of how the US vetoed the ceasefire in Gaza, how the people of Congo are being tortured as they mine for Tesla and other huge tech companies who pay them nothing and don't care for their lives, I just think of all the violence that is happening around the world...the list continues and continues and its a shame that a lot of what he was speaking about in his book are things that are still happening.
I think this is an important read and one that can inspire and fuel a person. I know I feel fueled to make sure I am standing up for what is right and doing all that I can to use the power and stage that I have to do something good.