Black Skinhead
Reflections on Blackness and Our Political Future
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
A provocative exploration of Black America's growing disillusionment with the Democratic party and the fragile alliance between Black voters and political identity.
A New York Times Editors' Choice Pick
One of Kirkus Reviews' Best Nonfiction Books of 2022
"Political activist Collins-Dexter's essay collection is timely as well as pointed. In it, she argues that Democrats have taken Black voters for granted, and that the consequences of this mistake have already begun — and will accelerate." —The New York Times, "15 Works of Nonfiction to Read This Fall"
In Black Skinhead, Brandi Collins-Dexter, former Senior Campaign Director for Color Of Change, delves into the complex relationship between Black voters and the Democratic party. Through sharp, timely essays that span the political, cultural, and personal, Collins-Dexter reveals decades of simmering disaffection in Black America, told as much through voter statistics as it is through music, film, sports, and the baffling mind of Kanye West.
While Black Skinhead is an outward look at Black votership and electoral politics, it is also a funny, deeply personal, and introspective look at Black culture and identity, ultimately revealing a Black America that has become deeply disillusioned with the failed promises of its country.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Political activist Collins-Dexter debuts with an immersive and insightful look at the Black community's fraying relationship with the Democratic Party. Focusing on Black Americans who "live outside of the bounds of fetishized Black political identity," Collins-Dexter describes rapper Kanye West, whose song gives the book its title, as a "canary in the coal mine" warning that Democrats are taking Black votes for granted. She admits that her 2020 presidential vote was more "anti-Trump" than "pro-Biden" and critiques the "symbolic gestures" of Democrats including Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer, who wore kente cloth in solidarity with the Black community, but resisted calls to reroute funding from police departments to social welfare programs. Throughout, Collins-Dexter spotlights a diverse range of Black political thinkers, including Marxists, conservatives, and disillusioned liberals who voice their grievances with the current political landscape, and interweaves cogent analyses of popular culture, including the movie Black Panther and the rise of streetwear fashion. Seamlessly balancing the personal, political, and cultural, and enlivened with a sharp sense of wit, these standout pieces strike an essential note of warning for Democrats.
