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2022., Adult, W.W. Norton & Company Call No: NEW BLK 960 F177a Edition: First American edition. Availability:1 of 1 At Your Library Summary Note: An exuberant, opinionated, stereotype-busting view of contemporary Africa in all its splendid diversity by one of its leading new writers. A lively and diverse continent of fifty-four countries, over two thousand languages, and 1.4 billion people, Africa has long been painted with a broad brush in Western literature, media, and culture, flattening it into a monolith. In Africa is Not a Country, the acclaimed journalist Dipo Faloyin boldly counters the stereotypes and highlights the realities of Africa's communities and histories. Starting with the complex urban life of Lagos, the largest city on the continent, Faloyin then traces the history of modern Africa, revealing how arbitrary boundaries drawn by colonizers led to tribal and cultural clashes, before telling the story of democracy in 10 dictatorships. He unravels the perils and ubiquity of the "white savior complex," explores the rivalries at the heart of the African Cup of Nations tournament, and joins the heated debate over which West African country makes the best jollof rice. And with an eye towards the future promise and potential of the continent, he speaks with local activists, artists, and writers who are defining Africa on their own terms. Witty and insightful, Africa is Not a Country is an idiosyncratic and entertaining exploration of a diverse continent that deserves to finally be understood, respected, and celebrated.
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2018., World Editions LLC Call No: BLK Bio M941a Availability:1 of 1 At Your Library Summary Note: "Born in exile, in Zambia, to a guerrilla father and a working mother, Sisonke Msimang is constantly on the move. Her parents, talented and highly educated, travel from Zambia to Kenya and Canada and beyond with their young family. Always the outsider, and against a backdrop of racism and xenophobia, Sisonke develops her keenly perceptive view of the world. In this sparkling account of a young girl's path to womanhood, Sisonke interweaves her personal story with her political awakening in America and Africa, her euphoria at returning to the new South Africa, and her disillusionment with the new elites"--
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c2006., Crown Publishers Call No: BLK 973.049 O12a Edition: 1st ed. Availability:1 of 1 At Your Library Summary Note: Senator Obama calls for a different brand of politics--a politics for those weary of bitter partisanship and alienated by the "endless clash of armies" we see in Congress and on the campaign trail; a politics rooted in the faith, inclusiveness, and nobility of spirit at the heart of our democracy. He explores those forces--from the fear of losing, to the perpetual need to raise money, to the power of the media--that can stifle even the best-intentioned politician. He examines the growing economic insecurity of American families, the racial and religious tensions within the body politic, and the transnational threats--from terrorism to pandemic--that gather beyond our shores. And he grapples with the role that faith plays in a democracy. Only by returning to the principles that gave birth to our Constitution, he says, can Americans repair a broken political process, and restore to working order a government dangerously out of touch with millions of ordinary Americans.--From publisher description.
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2008, c2006., Vintage Books Call No: 973.049 O12a Edition: 1st Vintage Books ed. Availability:1 of 1 At Your Library
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-- How we came apart, how we come together2017., General, Ballantine Books Call No: BLK 320.50 J79b Edition: First edition. Availability:1 of 1 At Your Library Summary Note: "Van Jones burst into the American consciousness during the 2016 presidential campaign with an unscripted, truth-telling style and an already established history of bridge-building across party lines. His election night commentary became a viral sensation. A longtime progressive activist with deep roots in the conservative South, Jones has made it his mission to challenge voters and viewers to stand in one another's shoes and disagree constructively. Now, Jones offers a blueprint for transforming our collective anxiety into meaningful change. Tough on Donald Trump but showing respect and empathy for his supporters, Jones takes aim at the failures of both parties before and after Trump's victory. He urges both sides to abandon the politics of accusation and focus on real solutions. Calling us to a deeper patriotism, he shows us how to get down to the vital business of solving, together, some of our toughest problems. The truth is messy; both sides have flaws. Both parties have strayed from their highest principles and let down their core constituencies. Rejecting today's political tribalism, Jones issues a stirring call for a new 'bipartisanship from below.' He points us toward practical answers to problems that affect us all regardless of region or ideology: rural and inner-city poverty, unemployment, addiction, unfair incarceration, and the devastating effects of the pollution-based economy on both coal country and our urban centers. Jones shares behind-the-scenes memories from his decades spent marching and protesting on behalf of working people, inspiring stories of ordinary citizens who became champions of their communities, and little-known examples of cooperation that have risen from the fog of partisan conflict. Van Jones encourages us to set fire to our old ways of thinking about politics and come together where the pain is greatest. Van Jones was a special adviser to the Obama White House and is the author of Rebuild the dream. He is a CNN political contributor and host of The Messy Truth with Van Jones"--Provided by publisher.
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-- Barack Obama and the politics of race in America[2016]., General, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Call No: BLK 305.8 D998b Edition: First Meriner Books edition. Availability:1 of 1 At Your Library Summary Note: "A provocative exploration of the politics of race and the Obama presidency. Barack Obama's presidency unfolded against the national traumas of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Freddie Gray, and Walter Scott. The nation's first African American president was careful to give few major race speeches, yet he faced criticism from all sides, including from African Americans. How has Obama's race affected his presidency and the nation's identity? Michael Dyson explores whether Obama's use of his own biracialism as a symbol has been driven by the president's desire to avoid a painful moral reckoning on race. And he sheds light on identity issues within the black power structure, telling how Obama has spurned traditional black power brokers, significantly reducing their leverage. Perhaps most movingly, Dyson illuminates the transformative moments, especially in his second term, when Obama has publicly embraced his blackness and used it as a powerful lens onto America, black and white. Interviews with President Obama, Eric Holder, Al Sharpton, and Andrew Young add depth to this tour of the nation's first black presidency"--Provided by publisher.
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2010., Alfred A. Knopf Call No: BLK Bio O12r Availability:1 of 1 At Your Library Summary Note: Through extensive on-the-record interviews with friends and teachers, mentors and disparagers, family members and Obama himself, David Remnick demonstrates how a rootless, unaccomplished, and confused young man created himself first as a community organizer in Chicago, then as a Harvard Law School graduate, and finally as President of the United States "By looking at Obama's political rise through the prism of our racial history, Remnick gives us the conflicting agendas of black politicians: the dilemmas of ... heroes of the civil rights movement who are forced to reassess old loyalties and understand the priorties of a new eneration of African-American leaders. The Bridge revisits the American drama of race, from slavery to civil rights, and makes clear how Obama's quest is not just his own but is emblematic of a nation where destiny is defined by indiiduals keen to imagine a future that is different from the reality of their current lives." -- from publisher description.
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2010., Farrar, Straus and Giroux Call No: BLK Bio M271c Edition: 1st ed. Availability:1 of 1 At Your Library Summary Note: This historic collection of documents archived at the Nelson Mandela Foundation offers an unprecedented insight into Mandela's remarkable life--from his first stirrings of political consciousness to his galvanizing role on the world stage.Draws on the author's personal archive of never-before-seen papers to offer unique access to the private world of the incomparable world leader, who worked from prison to end apartheid in South Africa.
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c2006., Crown Publishers Call No: BLK 973.049 W724e Edition: 1st ed. Availability:1 of 1 At Your LibraryClick here to watch Click here to view
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2023., HarperOne Call No: NEW BLK Bio H747e Edition: First edition. Availability:1 of 1 At Your Library Summary Note: Eyes on the Horizon is Balarama Holness's story of lifting himself up through the power of self-determination, spirituality and no small amount of rebellion to confront the systemic racism of his city and his country. He accomplished this first through football, going all the way to a Grey Cup championship, and later through activism and politics.
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2005., McGill-Queen's University Press Call No: BLK 962.404 C676f Availability:1 of 1 At Your Library
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2022., Hamish Hamilton, an imprint of Penguin Canada Call No: BLK Fic Bul Availability:1 of 1 At Your Library Summary Note: "This novel follows the unexpected fall of Old Horse, the long-serving leader of a fictional country, and the drama that follows for a rumbustious nation of animals on the path to true liberation. Inspired by the unexpected ouster by coup in November 2017 of Robert G. Mugabe, Zimbabwe's president of nearly four decades, this novel shows a country's imploding, narrated by a chorus of animal voices that unveil the ruthlessness required to uphold the illusion of absolute power and the imagination and bulletproof optimism to overthrow it completely. By immersing readers in the daily lives of a population in upheaval, Bulawayo reveals the dazzling life force and irrepressible wit that lie barely concealed beneath the surface of seemingly bleak circumstances. At the center of this tumult is Destiny, a young goat who returns to Jidada to bear witness to revolution--and to recount the unofficial history and the potential legacy of the females who have quietly pulled the strings. The animal kingdom--its connection to our primal responses and resonance in the mythology, folktales, and fairy tales that define cultures the world over--unmasks the surreality of contemporary global politics to help us understand our world more clearly, even as Bulwayo plucks us right out of it. Although Zimbabwe is the immediate inspiration for this thrilling story, this novel was written in a time of global clamor, with resistance movements across the world challenging different forms of oppression. Thus it often feels like Bulawayo captures several places in one blockbuster allegory, crystallizing a turning point in history with the texture and nuance that only the greatest fiction can."--
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2022., Scribner Canada Call No: NEW BLK Bio T469l Edition: Scribner Canada edition. Availability:1 of 1 At Your Library Summary Note: From a leading scholar on the politics of race comes a work of family history, memoir, and insight gained from a unique journey across the continent, on what it is to be Black in North America.
