How to Make a Slave and Other Essays (21st Century Essays) PDF
Preview How to Make a Slave and Other Essays (21st Century Essays)
JER ALD WALKER “No one—absolutely no one—I’ve read is writing better than Jerald Walker about race, being black, and the depths and complexities of our humanity.” —CHARLES JOHNSON, author of Middle Passage, winner of the National Book Award ADVANCE PRAISE FOR HOW TO MAKE A SLAVE “These aren’t essays. This is hypnosis, a spell of enchant- ment cast over the reader by a masterful writer whose crystal-clear vision is not only original but revelatory. I laughed out loud, nodded at Jerald Walker’s delivery of so much truth, and just shook my head at how gracefully he achieves so much so quickly in every piece in How to Make a Slave. All I can say is, ‘Wow.’ And you can’t just consume one; you’ll find yourself gobbling down every essay here and hungering for more. No one—absolutely no one—I’ve read is writing better than Jerald Walker about race, being black, and the depths and complexities of our humanity.” —Charles Johnson, author of Middle Passage, winner of the National Book Award “Ignited by the everyday sparks of racial conflict—whether on a college campus or in an aisle at Whole Foods—these extraordinarily candid essays crackle with humor and dra- matic tension. As ‘race stories,’ they also add a creative and subtle twist to an issue too often expressed in pre- dictable polemics. This new collection establishes Jer- ald Walker as truly one of the most gifted essayists of our time.” —Robert Atwan, Series Editor, Best American Essays “I’ve been waiting for this, the first collection of essays by one of our best essayists, for years. Jerald Walker’s How to Make a Slave is notable for its persistence of vision. These essays are relentlessly humane even as they stare into America’s split, racist heart. And like America and Ameri- cans, this book is both funny and fucked up, and neither can exist without the other.” —Ander Monson, author of I Will Take the Answer “This piercing and restless collection slices through this country’s agitated racial landscape with the tenacity of a thunderbolt. Walker manages to be all of us—we are all the college English department’s pet token, we are all the potential Whole Foods crime wave, we are all the Negro middle American agonizing over a return trip to the implosive inner city from whence we came. These fresh, revelatory snippets of black life deserve a rollicking col- lective Amen! and an audience of both the converted and the curious.” —Patricia Smith, author of Incendiary Art “If there is a book you need to read as our country is about to devour itself, it is How to Make a Slave. Walker’s sharp voice cuts through the social malaise of our culture, delivering intimate moments of his life—from a boy in South Chicago to a young student writer trying to find voice amid a myriad of black stereotypes to a father rais- ing two boys in a divided country. These essays enlighten us through depth and complexity of thought and the veracity of experience.” —Ira Sukrungruang, author of Buddha’s Dog and Other Meditations HOW TO MAKE A SLAVE 21ST CENTURY ESSAYS David Lazar and Patrick Madden, Series Editors HOW TO MAKE A SL AVE A N D O T H E R E S S AYS Jerald Walker MAD CREEK BOOKS, AN IMPRINT OF THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY PRESS COLUMBUS Copyright © 2020 by Jerald Walker. All rights reserved. Published by Mad Creek Books, an imprint of The Ohio State University Press. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Walker, Jerald, author. Title: How to make a slave and other essays / Jerald Walker. Other titles: 21st century essays. Description: Columbus : Mad Creek Books, an imprint of The Ohio State University Press, [2020] | Series: 21st century essays | Summary: “Personal essays exploring identity, family, and community through the prism of race and black culture. Confronts the medical profession’s racial biases, shopping while black at Whole Foods, the legacy of Michael Jackson, raising black boys, haircuts that scare white people, racial profiling, and growing up in Southside Chicago”—Provided by publisher. Identifiers: LCCN 2020007415 | ISBN 9780814255995 (paperback) | ISBN 081425599X (paperback) | ISBN 9780814278215 (ebook) | ISBN 0814278213 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Walker, Jerald. | African Americans—Race identity. | Race discrimination. | Families. | American essays—21st century. Classification: LCC PS3623.A35938 A6 2020 | DDC 305.896—dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020007415 Cover design by Amanda Weiss Text design by Juliet Williams Type set in ITC New Baskerville in memory of James Alan McPherson CONTENTS How to Make a Slave 1 Dragon Slayers 7 Before Grief 16 Inauguration 21 Kaleshion 29 The Heritage Room 36 Unprepared 42 Feeding Pigeons 49 Breathe 56 The Heart 63 Balling 68 Testimony 75 Smoke 82 Wars 89 Simple 94 The Designated Driver 100
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