Rating: 
Summary: Listen to every voice
Review: It is personally unsettling to offer such a lofty recommendation for a book I really did not enjoy. However my responses, intellectually and emotionally, are precisely why LOSING THE RACE must be read - assuming under the correlations of Professor John McWhorter's premises I, as a Black American, still possess the free will to make an independent intellectual choice.I picked up the book after catching part of an animated discussion between the author and an orchestrated cabal of opponents on one of the morning news programs last fall. In my view, he outlined a set of disconcerting premises regardless of where one is positioned on the ideological spectrum. Athough the book has implications to most aspects of societal growth in "Black America," the central focus is stagnated progression in the educational arena. McWhorter cites statistical data illustrating lagging SAT scores, under-performance in the classroom, trailing GPAs and non-competitive college graduation percentages, all of which he attributes in no small measure to the impact of his self-defined triumvirate of "cults": victimology, separatism, and anti-intellectualism. Much of the information provided in LTR has been addressed, under slightly different nomenclature, by authors like Shelby Steele and Ward Connerly. Yet, in as much as the encumbrances (whatever they may be) to equalized achievement remain, books like this one are of value to promote ongoing investigation of the causes, from all perspectives. McWhorter is specific (not surprisingly) in distancing himself from the theories offered in "Bell Curve" by Herrnstein and Murray. Obviously, the slippery slope of affirming the idea of a genetic component to intelligence is one I think few Black Americans want to tread. Unfortunately, he also distances himself from the scientific method by heavily depending on anecdotal example, which happens to be the second of my personal concerns with his work. The first is his failure to engage in open consideration of all factors contributing to the behaviors he sees a critical to the establishment of his cults. Was victimology an existing issue for Black Americans prior to the advent of Affirmative Actions programs and Equal Opportunity Initiatives? Admittedly, some of his points have intuitive validity for me, whereas others, like the very idea of anti-intellectualism, strike me as counter-intuitive in such a broad application. However my gut feelings are not any more conclusive than the limited sampling of his personal experiences. More scientific substantiation is highly desirable. Very few subjects have the ability to polarize as distinctly as discussions of race. John Mcwhorter has stepped into the fray with a set of postulates that are engaging, but the flaws his in method leave LTR somewhat below totally persuasive. Irrespectively, the book deserves objective consideration.
Rating: 
Summary: An excellent book but with one problem !
Review: I think that Professor McWhorter is on the right track. And, I hope & pray that he never gives up the fight against the negativity within. But, I have one major problem. There needs to be a greater focus on a problem behind the problem. The Bell Curve misidentifies the problem in the black community as low intelligence. But, the real problem is not low-intelligence but rather low-self-esteem. This problem is caused by a terrible lode stone hung around black peoples neck by "world culture." World culture ( the western Christian version for blacks in America ) elevates light to symbolize holiness and devalues dark to symbolize unholiness. This helps to give many light skinned people a positive feeling about themselves but this also causes many dark skinned people ( and those with "dark" blood ) to develop a negative & contemptuous feeling about themselves; their families; & their people. This negative feeling leads to the behavior patterns many racists and racial "scientists" have misidentified as coming from a supposedly lower intellect. To put it simply, if you think that you are "a loser," than, you will most likely become "a loser." If you think that you are a fool, than, you are very prone to act like a fool; and so on. The real question is, how do you snap dark skinned people --especially those of African origin-- out of this self-perpetuated "MENTAL BONDAGE" of self-contempt that lies behind much of the negative "self-defeating" attitudes focused on by McWhorter ? Jesse Jackson has ( and others have ) told blacks that we are somebody. The thing is many of us just don't believe it. Nevertheless, Professor McWhorters book has done his part in the struggle to beat back negativity. God bless him !
Rating:
Summary: Powerful Concepts, Necessary Words, by fermed
Review: This is a book about blacks in America and I am not black; yet the issue of race is as important to me as it is to everyone, no matter what their skin color. I saw and applauded the extraordinary changes that took place in the sixties with the advent of the civil rights movement and the legistation it fostered. It brought about the enfranchisement of blacks. As the years went by, I expected that sooner or later African American leaders would congratulate themselves (and maybe whites, also) about the immense changes they had accomplished, and about their occupying, at last, a place in an economic and educational playing field that, through their efforts, was now more or less level; but in time, the complaints about white racism, the cries of oppression, and the demands for redress not only did not abate, but, hearing the agonizing wails of some of their leaders, one would have thought that slavery was back and more virulent than ever. What Martin Luther King and his supporters had to say about the brutal social status of blacks in the nation made a lot of sense because social injustice in a grand scale was there for all to see. What Maxine Waters, Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, and others so loudly decry now in terms of whites abusing and oppressing blacks is impossible to see because it is simply not there. The war for the rightful place of blacks in society is over and has been won: nothing can stop a black from reaching the top because of the color of his skin; only small mop-up operations are still needed here and there, and they too are diminishing in frequency and importance. That notion is at the core of this book. This is not a work devoted to "blaming the victims" as it has been misrepresented by some critics; it is simply a book addressing the issue of why blacks are not doing much better than they are, even though as a group they have already accomplished a great deal. Why not more? The subtitle of this book is "Self-Sabotage in Black America," and McWhorter pulls no punches in his diagnosis of what is wrong: he sees blacks becoming professional victims paralyzed by their self-pity ("the cult of victimology," he calls it) and being deprived by their own anti-intellectualism in the school system. He points to the "cult of separatism" in which blacks stay away from competing in the main culture because such a culture is "white" and therefore unfriendly. One of the most moving and disarming passages in the book is this: "Every time a black person outside the ghetto calls herself oppressed because of scattered inconveniences, as opposed to the brute horrors that out ancestors lived with daily she is saying that Thurgood Marshall and Martin Luther King didn't accomplish anything but get some signs taken off some water fountains and allow us to sit where we want to on the bus. That, if you ask me, is sacrilege." It is a powerful book and an irritating one. The issues brought forth in it should be discussed openly while such discussions are still possible. The only true danger about this book is not that it will be read, but that it will not be read by enough people.
Rating:
Summary: If Only. . .
Review: As I read this well written book I found myself thinking if only the book could be featured on Oprah's book show it could do more to advance Black achievement than anything since the civil rights movement of the 1960's! The discussion could end the long outdated Black's as victims liberal political clap trap and promote Black's as achievers and winners. This book could, and should be, the battle cry to promote Black education achievement. The revelation would be hard on so called Black leaders who have over played the "victim card" or narrow "acceptable" political thinking but what an improvement it could cause. Read it and write Oprah--On with the educational revolution!!!
Rating:
Summary: Nothing new, but earnestly presented
Review: I have to say that John McWhorter is a sincere person. It comes through in his writing, and after I read the book I emailed him and he replied the very next day! The good points about the book- *McWhorter is a "liberal" by any definition, a man who voted twice for Ralph Nader and favors MOST forms of affirmative action (hiring, firing and contracting), so you can't dismiss this as any angry conservative screed *He's brutally honest about the shortcomings of his own people, and he does it in the most excruciating of manners, presenting REAL EXAMPLES of REAL PEOPLE rather than disembodied statistics. He even comments on how affirmative action helped his own career *His themes are few and far between, but he digs deep until its hard to refute them -Weak points *There very lack of statistics because he anecdotalizes the book so much *His very concern and abiding sincerity come through sometimes so strongly and devovling into utter despair that is so palpable that it seems to warp into contempt for his own people similar to what many right-wingers voice-an issue of tone as it were
Rating:
Summary: Anecdotal Evidence: Convincing, But Not Conclusive
Review: The problem with anecdotal evidence is that someone can always come up with a counter-example that "proves" the opposite. This isn't fatal to McWhorter's premises or his conclusions (which have already been discussed by other reviewers) but does make them less convincing - even though as a former Berkeley/Stanford student, I agreed with him. With notable exceptions, there does seem to be in the black community a certain anti-intellectual strain (one that, I think, is also shared by the larger American society) that does not place a high premium on academics and its associated costs: long, slow, time-consuming study. You disagree? Then why aren't African-Americans, who are 12%-13% of the population, equally represented in the "hard" sciences? Where are those missing tens of thousands of African-American engineers, scientists, computer specialists, doctors, etc.? I don't think its because Blacks are not capable. My anecdote? Having been an engineering student at Berkeley and a graduate student at Stanford, I noticed that my African-American classmates were far less likely to speak in class, participate in study groups, or be seen late in the evenings at the labs. Yes, I know, someone will say they'd been discouraged from talking, excluded from study sessions, lock out of labs, but it must have been a very subtle racism which I never noticed directed against me. I believe that African-American students can be the intellectual equals of anyone - but if the other students are staying up late studying, seeing the professor during office hours and meeting with other students - they will lag behind. As a graduate assistant, I rarely had my African-American students seek my help while I practically had my Asian-American students lined up at the door. Maybe I sent out negative vibes?
Rating:
Summary: We have met the enemy, and he is us.
Review: This book might be viewed as a bit repetitive by some, but it certainly contains points well made by an obviously objective, albeit sometimes brutally honest black professor.
As I was reading the book I observed Tavis Smiley on the Black Enterainment Network (BET) categorize J.C. Watts as not truly a brother since he had been elected by whitey and not by a constituency of his ethnic heritage - what a crock! This book helps me to understand the thinking behind such an absurd statement. Since when does racism flow only in one direction? A well written, common-sense book. I was left with some profound thoughts, e.g. that the cultural shackles black America willingly places upon itself are much more debilitating than those of any slave master, that most blacks are generally comfortable with the bar being lowered for them due to their insecurity and indoctrination in victimology. Most importantly, the book emphatically makes the point that the only road to true freedom is through performance - beginning with academics. This is logically accomplished one person at a time - not legislated for a group. The author's analysis of affirmative action is also of interest. It is indeed discouraging to observe some of today's activities by the so-called black leadership (charlatans), as well as politicans who dishonestly cater to an impressionable black community. However, I am encouraged by the belief that things are slowly changing due in no small part to independent thinkers auch as Professor McWhorter. I have long been perplexed by the prejudicial and illogical acts of the O.J. jury and by the idea that an ethnic community in our country could vote 10 to 1 for ANY presidential candidate. This is independent thinking? Unfortunately, there is much progress yet to be realized.
Rating:
Summary: You could save some money.
Review: You could save some money by reading the excerpt, chapter one, offered by Amazon and couple it with the review by "Nailah" and get a good idea of the problem. The rest of the book is insightful to the reader interested in this subject.
Rating: 
Summary: Wrong Assumption Beget Wrong Conclusions
Review: African Americans did not elect to become victims. It is a status thrust upon us by the countless offenses and the many opportunities we are denied daily during the course of living. The term victim implies an injury that occurred solely at the discretion of the offending party. Thus, one can accurately state that given African American history, African Americans have been victimized and continued to be victimized, as countless news articles and reports attest. Thus, African Americans are not simply conscripting visions of victimization, but rather acknowledging a reality that McWhorter seems to ignore. Acknowledging and recognizing victimization is the first step in the healing process. It is difficult to heal, however, when new wounds are inflicted every day. This perhaps explains why countless African Americans feel the ongoing need to acknowledge and point out the disparities that characterize their lives. While I invite innovative thinking, McWhorter's book reminds me of the abusive husband who inflicts further pain on the victimized wife by reminding her that it was she who caused the abuse. This book of wrong assumptions leads McWhorter to an equal number of wrong conclusions
Rating:
Summary: Whatchu Talkin Bout McWhorter
Review: On page 82 the author states "the reader may have detected by now that I watch a lot of television." He then goes on to quote from an episode of THE FACTS OF LIFE TV show. Elsewhere in his book, the author uses the movie THE HUNT FROM THE RED OCTOBER to try and make another point. He writes bout James Earl Jones being the sonar operator. Dr. McWhorter, that was Courtney Vance. This from a man who writes about "the cult of anti-intellectualism." The book was replete with lightweight reasoning and naiveness. Throughout the book, the author said he was writing based on his experience. The reader should keep this mind or consider this fact before purchasing the book. The author is a 34 year old associate professor of linguistics who in his own words watches a lot of TV. In criticizing anti-intellectualism, the author states that he has only met two black people in his life who have taken Latin. In the high school where I work in Fairfax County, Virginia we have six blacks (I counted them) taking Latin at the present time. On page 128 of his book, Dr. McWhorter writes that Asian immigrants' children take on school as a challenge, learning English via immersion, helping one another in study groups, refusing to accept anything but their own best efforts. He goes on to say that black Americans, however, generally consider the particular challenge of school utterly insurmountable without special set-asides and that black people are taught from the cradle that books are not us. As the Probation Counselor for my high school I'm sure that Dr. McWhorter would be shocked to know that three-quarters of the kids on probation are Asians and that we have Asian gangs in our school community. I read the entire book twice and I am saddened for my brother from Lawnside, New Jersey. I would love to be here to read his views on race when he is 60 years old. But at this time I don't believe that he demonstrated in the rest of his book that he is qualified to write the last chapter entitled "How Can We Save The African-American Race." Like everyone else we have a lot of issues to deal with, but we don't need saving, especially with the advice that comes from a 34 year old linquistics professor who spends his time watching TV.
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