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Summary: Losing the Race
Review: Insightful offering a perspective I could not know from personal experiences. That being said, I found the structure and pace of the book to be quite "academic" i.e., wordy, and redundant. While the book was generally well written, it did get into common patterns of a sociology textbook. Book did enlighten me as to why African Americans do not flourish in our society. I have always held the view African Americans are not inherently inferior intellectually or otherwise yet it is a puzzle why they disproportionately fail in school and life. Book went a long way in enlightening me as to why this trend continues with American Blacks.
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Summary: Excellent book on where we go from here!
Review: I was pleasantly suprised to read a book that is not from a victim stand point. We need to and can do better that what we are doing as a race. I too am surrounded with lazy people who go out of their way to do as little as possible, but want all the accoladess. Affirmative action is still needed, but we have to do our part!
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Summary: A courageous and thoughtful work
Review: John McWhorter has produced a beautifully written and exceptionally thoughtful book which proposes that African Americans, though not in essence "responsible" for many of their current difficulties, are indeed responsible for working toward viable solutions. He presents a tripartite theory of imbedded assumptions in black culture which include notions of victimology, separateness, and anti-intellectualism. He sees these elements as grossly interfering with black achievement and proposes a number of solutions to combat these difficulties. This book treads on many notions of political correctness and will certainly offend those who have built their careers on promulgating victimology in the black community. Perhaps the main weakness of this book may reside in McWhorter's underestimating what it will take to alter this current dysfunctional mindset.
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Summary: A Book of Rare Courage
Review: I applaud Dr. McWhorter for his courageous, non-apologetic text about the state of Black America. It's one of the saddest, smartest, most well-reasoned pieces of non-fiction I have ever read.
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Summary: After reading both the book and the reviews....
Review: it seems to me the people who disliked the book are usually the ones who saw themselves in the book but did not like what the saw. As a Black Man I agree 100% with McWhorter. The black people who do not choose to be blind to the truth. They would prefer to blame others for their own failings. That is not new. It is a story as old as man. It is easier to blame "the man" than actually taking responsibility for your own actions. In effect, it is great he gets negative reviews from people who admit to not reading the book. It proves his points more powerfully than he ever could. Like they say, Buy the book, don't wait for the movie. Bill
Rating: 
Summary: I Disagree!
Review: As a "gypsy" adjunct instructor of the Humanities, I taught for 6 years in the San Francisco Bay Area. Since then, I have moved on to more "permanent" positions in the Mid-West (Kansas) and (now) in Georgia, where I am a an Assistant Professor of Art History and Interdisciplinary Studies. I have taught college courses on all levels from coast to coast and I strongly disagree with McWhorter's ideas. I read through the first third of his book with strong disagreement. I struggled through the second third ONLY by SUBSTITUTING his "black" for my experience of "white" students (to generalize, which is fair, since HE does!). Generally speaking, I have found my black students (from coast to coast: San Francisco Bay Area to Georgia and all the places in between) to be far superior in terms of class attendence, particiation contributions, and examinations. Also (generally speaking), the highest achievements in creativity and demonstration of critical thinking skills have been consistently achieved by African-American students in my courses. The characteristics that McWhorter attributes to Black students are--in my considerable experience--far more applicable to the majority of white students in my classes! This is the meanest, most reprehensible, and (dare I say?) EVIL book that I have read since Bork's "Slouching Towards Gomorrah." (At least Bork was white and also clue-less.) McWhorter's disturbing combination of displaced self-hatred and smug, self-congratulatory complacency is sickening. I read this book in order to "learn the enemy." No thinking person will be fooled by McWhorter's shabbby, ill-constructed, and questionably documented "arguments." The only value of this book is its interest as a psychological study in self-loathing (very sad).
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Summary: One of the most daring and honest books...
Review: Brilliant ideas, honest analysis, beautiful language. I am sure the author will be attacted, but at last somebody is saying it like it is.
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Summary: Not terribly original, but still on target.
Review: Several synopses of McWhorter's basic theories about roadblocks in the education and socioeconomic advancement of African-Americans can be found elsewhere, so I won't go too much into the specifics of this pretty-good book. In fact, his core assertion that whatever shackles remain on the feet of blacks in today's America are largely self-placed has been written about a number of times before. I might suggest Dinesh D'Souza's terrific "The End of Racism" over this one, though. Ralph Ellison's essay "The World and the Jug" is also terrific. It's an assertion I tend to agree with more and more. As a person who is not black - I do not feel this disqualifies me from having an opinion - I feel that African-Americans need to stay focused on removing the "group" mentality. That is, stop considering themselves as a member of a group which has had to endure injustices and stereotypes and begin focusing on their own individual characteristics, qualities, and possibilities. I'm surprised more of today's mainstream black leaders (Jackson, Mfume, Farrakhan, Sharpton, Rangel, etc.) don't pick up on this theme. It seems all these people want to do is point out certain isolated injustices and use them to give a false impression of national crisis. Maybe they do this to keep African-Americans unified and mobilized come election time. But it's an intellectually dishonest thing to do. There are no racial crises in America right now. The Tyler, Texas story wouldn't have even been big news 40 years ago. This is not to suggest there isn't racism in America. There always has been and there always will be. But many people waste their time decrying this truism of human nature. Should we accept racism? No, every American should detest it and try to keep people who hold these views from obtaining powerful positions. But neither is there an epidemic that would serve to hold African-Americans down. This certainly existed several generations ago - and for many generations before that. But those days are long gone and while remnants of that sad chapter in American history unfortunately endure, many blacks have completely separated themselves from race-based anything. Some of the sharpest, most successful people I know are black. And their race (or mine, for that matter) never enters either of our minds when we talk or do business. The ball, as they say, is in your court. It's high time that Americans of all creeds and colors move on from our past. As Stephen Covey brilliantly points out, the key to advancement is to stop concerning yourself with your past and begin focusing on your potential. This is for each individual person - black, white, or red - to do for their own *on* their own. I applaud McWhorter if for no other reason than joining the small but growing chorus of black thinkers and writers who present a very different viewpoint on present day issues affecting blacks than that of the mainstream African-American establishment. To quote Clarence Thomas: "I have come here today not in anger or to anger...nor have I come to defend my views, but rather to assert my right to think for myself, to refuse to have my ideas assigned to me as though I was an intellectual slave because I'm black. I come to state that I'm a man, free to think for myself and do as I please."
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Summary: Poor piece of scholarship
Review: There are a number of problems with this work. However I will focus on a few. The only research McWhorter uses HIMSELF is that of the personal anecdote. Though there are benefits to such an approach, it is almost impossible to generalize based on the "this happened to ME" model of data collection. Though he does cite other works (some based on independent research, some not) this in no way serves as a substitute for careful data collection and analysis. What this problem leads to is a situation in which alternative hypotheses are not tested. If "middle class blacks" are more responsible for the problems of their children (educationally) than systemic problems related to racism, for example, then school movement should have no bearing on school performance. But research has shown that this is not the case. Furthermore, if the problems that McWhorter notes are uniquely "black" then they should not appear in American culture at large. Take the idea of "smart=acting white." If this is solely a black phenomenon, then whites would not have a similar concept. Of course we know this is not the case--the concepts of "nerd" and "geek" are testimonies to this fact. I thought that McWhorter committed these errors because he was not familiar with the principles of objective research. Reading one of his other books (THE WORD ON THE STREET), I found that I was both wrong...AND right. Wrong in that THE WORD ON THE STREET is a piece of careful and interesting scholarship based on serious study. Right in that when it comes to black children, McWhorter seems to throw analysis out of the window (he notes in his work, that black children have an educational problem that "can't be studied by social science"). In conclusion then, McWhorter's work is perfect for those predisposed to its conclusions....but for those interested in either careful research, or nuanced analysis....look elsewhere.
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Summary: "Losing the Race" has a message sent by the wrong messager.
Review: I'm an african american female who attended mixed race schools my entire life. My mother was not satisfied simply stating "your just as good as them", she wanted me to know first hand. Her decision is quite frankly what people of African decent living in this country should do for their children if the chains of psychological inslavement (a book written by Dr. Naim Akbar), are ever to be truely broken. But that's only the beginning. Let me be clear, I'm not a fan of Mr. McWhorters, or his pessimistic view points of African Americans as a whole. What prompted me to read his book was solely based on the subject matter. I've often thought about my own performance as well as that of others and wondered if were performing up to par, and if not, why not. However, unlike McWhorters, I'm a firm believer in "fixing the problem, not just the blame". His Book is a starting point, but the message can not stop there; nor can it be written with such tunnel one-sided view points to leave out any notion that perhaps, would lend credence to the importance of continuing programs such as affirmative action. I am who he's referring to: African American, middle classed, well traveled; well exposed. I have absolutely no reason not to excel. HOWEVER, to quickly dismiss the race issues as just another "ax to grind", in my view demonstrates his lack of tolerance, and perhaps (hidden) dislike of his own people. I didn't let Racism, stop me but I'm sure it effected me. In law school, this "middle-classed socially accepted law student" was told that she didn't belong (by a professor) and that I was "out gunned" by other students whose backgrounds included family members that were judges; senators and the like. He didn't know that my very own aunt was a tenured professor at Howard University Law School. I wonder if he was on the Admissions Committee? I often told students that even if I got into law school based on affirmative action, the only way I got out (having served on the Honors Moot Court Team might I add) was based on Carla action. Racism, I believe will one day not effect us, but if we were truly being honest with ourselves, we would admit that the day hasn't come yet. If you who missed C-Span and "Politically Incorrect" you missed an opportunity to see how jaded, and pessimistic Mr. McWhorters is; I know the dialogue has to begin, but quite frankly I hope someone else who will look at the issue from all sides; admit the strengths and weaknesses of differing ideals, and perhaps start us on the path to resolving the issues. As for me, its a personal journey. Mr. McWhorters has assisted me in reminding myself to stay on the path by continuing to be "twice as good" until the situation of "racism" and "ignorance" is resolved. I just personally think that the message could be a postive breaking point if written in the proper context; by someone willing to acknowledge and investigate other perspectives. Someone who does not simply act as though there is no connection what so ever to the past and present circumstances.
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