I'm going to stick up for Cornel West here

[Recursion]

So, in the current shakeup in African American thought I am definitely Team Ta-Nehisi. He's almost exactly my age. I see the world roughly the way he does (though my God I cannot describe it with the eloquence he does). I see white supremacy as a question of the plundering of black bodies, and I see it as central to building a capitalist oligarchy rather than the other way around.

That said, I absolutely would never have understood Coates if I hadn't listened to West and Smiley for years. That was a station of the cross I, at least, needed.

There's been a lot made about race and politics this cycle. One point that both West and Coates would agree on is that the joke is on white liberals: it is literally impossible to understand American history or politics separate from black history or politics. They are entirely one and the same thing. America invented blackness for political purposes (see Coates on Dolezal for this) and by that action wedded American politics to black politics inseparably.

You should read West, and you should read Coates, and you should do so with the thought that this is a larger question than this campaign.

[jeff47]

1. Can't I just scan their speeches for keywords instead?

(sarcastic kick)

[haikugal]

2. The history of racism is long..

We found it useful.

Good post Thanks!

Dr West has nothing to be ashamed of in my view.

I found this series informative, this was done in celebration of the 200 year ending of slavery by the BBC4.

http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/racism-history/

Racism: A History
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Racism: A History

A documentary which is exploring the impact of racism on a global scale, as part of the season of programmes marking the 200th anniversary of the abolition of slavery. Beginning by assessing the implications of the relationship between Europe, Africa and the Americas in the 15th century, it considers how racist ideas and practices developed in key religious and secular institutions, and how they showed up in writings by European philosophers Aristotle and Immanuel Kant.

Looking at Scientific Racism, invented during the 19th century, an ideology that drew on now discredited practices such as phrenology and provided an ideological justification for racism and slavery. These theories ultimately led to eugenics and Nazi racial policies of the master race. Some upsetting scenes.

The third and final episode of Racism: A History examines the impact of racism in the 20th Century. By 1900, European colonial expansion had reached deep into the heart of Africa. Under the rule of King Leopold II, The Belgian Congo was turned into a vast rubber plantation. Men, women and children who failed to gather their latex quotas would have their limbs dismembered. The country became the scene of one of the century’s greatest racial genocides, as an estimated 10 million Africans perished under colonial rule. Contains scenes which some viewers may find disturbing.

Episodes included: 1. The Color of Money, 2. Fatal Impact, and 3. A Savage Legacy.

?list=

It isn't the last word, just 'in addition' to your post.

[Tommy2Tone]

3. I'll pass on West

I have nothing good to say about the grand standing professor.