Nicholas McCane
I’m no stranger to D. Watkins. “Black Boy Smile” was the book that got me back into reading. I gave it five stars. I also read “The Cook UP” which I gave three and a half stars.
This one started out really well. He talked about bad things that affect black people in their everyday lives. How alcohol is bad for them, how men degrade women (outstanding chapter), how rap music poisons the minds of children, the corrupt school system, and bad food options (food deserts).
But then somewhere in the middle, he goes on this wild rant about how all police are bad, especially the black ones. He has a chapter titled “Black Cop Down”. I was born and raised on the Southside of Chicago. I understand his pain; I've been there. It’s the reason I decided not to be a doctor, and chose law enforcement instead. The neighborhood needs to see people who are from there and who look/think like them. And who can stop, de-escalate, report, terminate, and/or arrest racist cops. And again, I’ve been there too.
In order to make a change, we need black police officers. And it’s hard out here for us. We catch hell from all sides. Yes, there are corrupt officers, racist officers, and terrible black officers too, but this is not the majority. But as an author, it’s his responsibility to research and tell the entire story. We are out here fighting the fight too.
I love this author’s street-level storytelling. It’s what I enjoy most about his writing. Here’s one of my favorite quotes from the book.
“Even though I was born in America, and my ancestors built its infrastructure for free, I’m not a part of the “Our” when they sing, “Our flag was still there!”… I feel like the “our” doesn’t include blacks, most women, gays, trans, and poor people of all colors.”
I’m no stranger to D. Watkins. “Black Boy Smile” was the book that got me back into reading. I gave it five stars. I also read “The Cook UP” which I gave three and a half stars.
This one started out really well. He talked about bad things that affect black people in their everyday lives. How alcohol is bad for them, how men degrade women (outstanding chapter), how rap music poisons the minds of children, the corrupt school system, and bad food options (food deserts).
But then somewhere in the middle, he goes on this wild rant about how all police are bad, especially the black ones. He has a chapter titled “Black Cop Down”. I was born and raised on the Southside of Chicago. I understand his pain; I've been there. It’s the reason I decided not to be a doctor, and chose law enforcement instead. The neighborhood needs to see people who are from there and who look/think like them. And who can stop, de-escalate, report, terminate, and/or arrest racist cops. And again, I’ve been there too.
In order to make a change, we need black police officers. And it’s hard out here for us. We catch hell from all sides. Yes, there are corrupt officers, racist officers, and terrible black officers too, but this is not the majority. But as an author, it’s his responsibility to research and tell the entire story. We are out here fighting the fight too.
I love this author’s street-level storytelling. It’s what I enjoy most about his writing. Here’s one of my favorite quotes from the book.
“Even though I was born in America, and my ancestors built its infrastructure for free, I’m not a part of the “Our” when they sing, “Our flag was still there!”… I feel like the “our” doesn’t include blacks, most women, gays, trans, and poor people of all colors.”