We Can't Breathe: On Black Lives, White Lies, and the Art of Survival

by Jabari Asim Narrated by Jabari Asim

Overview

A Finalist for the PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay

Insightful and searing essays that celebrate the vibrancy and strength of black history and culture in America by critically acclaimed writer Jabari Asim

In We Can't Breathe, Jabari Asim disrupts what Toni Morrison has exposed as the “Master Narrative” and replaces it with a story of black survival and persistence through art and community in the face of centuries of racism. In eight wide-ranging and penetrating essays, he explores such topics as the twisted legacy of jokes and falsehoods in black life; the importance of black fathers and community; the significance of black writers and stories; and the beauty and pain of the black body. What emerges is a rich portrait of a community and culture that has resisted, survived, and flourished despite centuries of racism, violence, and trauma. These thought-provoking essays present a different side of American history, one that doesn't depend on a narrative steeped in oppression but rather reveals black voices telling their own stories.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

08/27/2018
In this small but expansive collection of essays, writer and cultural critic Asim (Preaching to the Chickens: The Story of Young John Lewis) draws on the full breadth of black history in the United States, illuminating the story of black resilience through the centuries. “Along with brutality, torture, and murder, a principal step in oppression, American style has long involved getting between the oppressed and their stories,” he writes. To combat this oppression, he discusses depictions of blackness in art, black fathers and father figures, the meaning of representation in literature, the racist roots of neighborhood watch squads, and the limits of respectability politics. In one heartfelt essay, he wonders at the power of a brick wall—built in a Massachusetts town by an enslaved artisan in 1765—to act as a physical reminder of great sacrifice. In Asim’s telling, Trayvon Martin, the black teenager who was murdered by a white neighborhood watch volunteer in 2012, lives alongside Pomp, the man who built that wall. Melding the personal with the national and cultural, this collection is a must-read for history buffs, activists, and students of societal power dynamics. (Oct.)

From the Publisher

"Asim delivers moving tales of Black survival in the face of racial injustice...Captivating."—Essence (October Reading Recs)

"A fantastic essay collection...Blending personal reflection with historical analysis and cultural and literary criticism, these essays are a sharp, illuminating response to the nation’s continuing racial conflicts."—Ron Charles, The Washington Post

"Jabari Asim delivers profound musings on race in contemporary America."—The Root

"A collection of essays that go wide and deep into the black experience in America. As a former editor and columnist for the Washington Post and editor-in-chief of the NAACP's The Crisis, Asim brings an impressive breadth of experience to these pieces. He places current events within the context of a legacy that is literary, political, and cultural, as well as racial, with a voice that is both compelling and convincing...A sharp vision that challenges readers to shift perspective and examine conventional narratives."—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"In this small but expansive collection of essays, writer and cultural critic Asim draws on the full breadth of black history in the United States, illuminating the story of black resilience through the centuries....Melding the personal with the national and cultural, this collection is a must-read."—Publishers Weekly

School Library Journal

Winter 2018

In contrast to the whitewashed, abridged history books that have long dominated our historical narrative stands this collection from the renowned writer, scholar, and cultural critic. In eight smartly crafted essays of varying lengths, Asim shares his experience as a black man in America. Most notable is his talent for braiding past and present into a cohesive explanation that shines a light on ugly histories while being honest about how far we have or have not come. "Shooting Negroes" links the murder of Trayvon Martin with slavery and the school-to-prison pipeline. The tender depiction of Asim's father show his roots as a poet—both in the short verses he includes as well as in the descriptions of his family. Educators may be best served by selecting pieces most appropriate for their students, as some entries assume knowledge of historical and current events or use advanced vocabulary, and one contains a graphic sexual description. VERDICT Sure to spur the conversation on race and identity, this is a strong addition to any collection for mature teens, especially as a supplement to history texts that have left out the stories and voices of people of color.—Lindsay Jensen, Nashville Public Library

Kirkus Reviews

★ 2018-08-13

A collection of essays that go wide and deep into the black experience in America.

As a former editor and columnist for the Washington Post and editor-in-chief of the NAACP's The Crisis, Asim (A Taste of Honey, 2009, etc.) brings an impressive breadth of experience to these pieces. He places current events within the context of a legacy that is literary, political, and cultural as well as racial, with a voice that is both compelling and convincing. "In ideal circumstances, the human body flows in a state of strut," he writes of the body confidence that white people too often find menacing in black males. "A jauntiness, an ease. A response to the rhythms that animate the earth….Strut is the body in motion, occupying, manipulating and moving through space. Strutting requires freedom, the liberty to flex and stretch." This prose struts in an inherently musical way that also seems integral to the black experience as the author delineates its rhythms. Some of these pieces are more ambitious than others and pack more of a punch—particularly "Getting It Twisted" and "The Elements of Strut" as well as the concluding "Of Love and Struggle: The Limits of Respectability," which counters Michelle Obama's strategy of going high when they go low. Others are slighter, such as one on black representation in children's literature, or more personal, like "Color Him Father," about Asim's family. Perhaps most problematic is the longest essay, "The Thing Itself," which ultimately offers a nuanced illumination of cultural appropriation but spends too much space on the old battle over William Styron's The Confessions of Nat Turner. Nonetheless, the author shows throughout how the past informs the present and how age-old fears and prejudices present themselves in new guises.

A sharp vision that challenges readers to shift perspective and examine conventional narratives.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940172263217
Publisher:	Brilliance Audio
Publication date:	03/12/2019
Edition description:	Unabridged

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