How to be Black / Baratunde Thurston.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Thurston, Baratunde.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

African Americans--Humor.

African Americans.

African Americans--Social conditions.

African Americans--Social conditions--Humor.

African American wit and humor.

American wit and humor.

Genre:

Humor.

Physical Description:

viii, 254 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

[New York] : Harper, [2012]

Summary:

Have you ever been called "too black" or "not black enough"? Have you ever befriended or worked with a black person? If you answered yes to any of these questions, this book is for you. Raised by a pro-black, Pan-Afrikan single mother during the crack years of 1980s Washington, DC, and educated at Sidwell Friends School and Harvard University, Baratunde Thurston has over thirty years' experience being black. Now, through stories of his politically inspired Nigerian name, the heroics of his hippie mother, the murder of his drug-abusing father, and other revelatory black details, he shares with readers of all colors his wisdom and expertise in how to be black. Beyond memoir, this guidebook offers practical advice on everything from "How to Be The Black Friend" to "How to Be The (Next) Black President" to "How to Celebrate Black History Month." To provide additional perspective, Baratunde assembled an award-winning Black Panel--three black women, three black men, and one white man (Christian Lander of Stuff White People Like)--and asked them such revealing questions as: "When Did You First Realize You Were Black?" ""How Black Are You?" "Can You Swim?" The result is a humorous, intelligent, and audacious guide that challenges and satirizes the so-called experts, purists, and racists who purport to speak for all black people. With honest storytelling and biting wit, Baratunde plots a path not just to blackness, but one open to anyone interested in simply "how to be."

Contents:

Where Did You Get That Name? 17

When Did You First Realize You Were Black? 23

Mama Thurston 31

How Black Are You? 41

Do You Know What an Oreo Is? 51

Wealth-Related Horse Violence 57

Why Are You Wearing That White Man Over Your Heart? 63

The U.S. Propaganda Machine: A Middle School Paper 69

The White Student Union 75

How to Be The Black Friend 79

How to Speak for All Black People 89

Have You Ever Wanted to Not Be Black? 101

Can You Swim? 109

Going Black to Africa 115

But I Don't Want to Kill People 125

Being Black at Harvard 133

How to Be The Black Employee 147

How to Be The Angry Negro 171

How to Be The (Next) Black President 179

How's That Post-Racial Thing Working Out for Ya? 201

The Future of Blackness 209.

ISBN:

0062003216

9780062003218

OCLC:

641532388

Publisher Number:

99947524702