Welcome everyone to the brooklyn book festival. Tonight is the seventh day of an eightday festival where we have presented over 100 programs and almost 300 authors. It has been a tremendous week of literary celebration as were very grateful to have his of the wilkerson and Michael Eric Dyson with us tonight. I would like to say one thing, show the love by purchasing their books in the link below. They are authors with books after all and going to turn over now to both of them to continue the conversation. Thank you very much. Thank you very kindly. Im honored to be here today with a woman who is among the 304 greatest writers in america, arguably the finest writer in america today. I am going to make that argument. So it is an extraordinary honor to be with you, ms. Isabel wilkerson, and to have this opportunity to chat with you. Theyre calling it a a conversation but im just going to fan boy out and as as a sayn the hood, ask you some questions. And see if we can stimulate the convers
His writing has been honored by the legacy award for creative nonfiction and any a literature, in his new book afropessimism, memoir and philosophy flowthrough and from one another as Frank Wilderson discusses an afro pessimist world of the occult with examples from his own life which in turn inform a lot. The screen is all yours. Guest it seems new every time. I thank everyone for coming up and sharing their evening with me in the auditorium of the free library of philadelphia. We are to gather like this perhaps. As horrible as this is, would have been in an auditorium. It is not worth the extra numbers. I hope everyone is safe and healthy. I am going to share with you an episode from my book. Those of you who have seen the book or read my other work or some are familiar with afropessimism, there are two trains running and i told John Williams of the new york times, what is the chain of critical theory which speaks to explain the structure the structure of black suffering that cannot
Succeed, and false black power . A critique of black civil rights leaders. Host jason riley, author, columnist, contributed to the wall street journal and manhattan institute, a foxs contributor and among your books please stop helping us. You say the following,g liberalism has also succeeded tragically in convincing blacks to see themselves first and foremost as victims. Guest yes. I believe that is a big part of political strategy. They have been at it for some time and, unfortunately, theyve had a lot of success in painting blacks as primarily victims, as defined by their victimization first and foremost and then the followup is that weic have a Government Program or government solution to help you overcome your victimhood. I think its a logical strategy. Host your book writes about this. Theres been a number of essays and books on Lyndon Johnson and the Great Society. Was it a failure or a success . Guest i think if you look at the actual track record of the programs, if you look a
Colonist, contributor to the wall street journal at the manhattan institute, fox newsey contributor among your books i want to begin where your book concludes because you say the following quote, liberalism as succeeded tragically in convincing blacks to see themselves first and foremost as victims. Yes, i believe that is a big part of a political strategy actually. They have been added for some time and unfortunately they have had a lot of success in painting blacks as primarily f victims ad as defined by their demise asian first and foremost and then thei followup of course is that we have a Government Program or government solution to help you overcome your victimhood so its a political strategy. Your book writes about this and they have been a number of essays in Lyndon Johnson in the Great Society and wasnt a failure or success . I think if you look at the actual track record of the program and if you look at the goals that the objectives that were stated at the time you would hav
I am pleased to introduce tonight speaker Professor Emeritus at virginia, the university he chairs the History Department the editor of a five volume collection of letters as well as the author of dissent of the Supreme Court and the nations constitutional dialogue the lies in the state for affirmativeaction is part of the national dialogue. Many of us have struggled to explain the policy and how it works. In his new book the affirmativeaction puzzle traces to through the present day with Historical Context how affirmative action takes on racism. On the cover Orlando Patterson rates it is a comprehensive account for this nonwhite version of affirmativeaction and in the challenging historical task that no other issue divides americans more it is meticulously researched and honestly crafted work to draw their own conclusions about the value of this experiment. Please join me to welcome Melvin Urofsky to harvard bookstore. [applause] thank you. As a historian my mentor always told me to s