Customer Reviews

A Dream Deferred: The Second Betrayal of Black Freedom in America

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

"Discussions about race" is almost an oxymoron. The positions most people hold are already fixed and there isn't much of the ability to hear the other side that is required to have a true discussion. Too often we simply look for writings and speeches that support our pre-existing notions, praise them as we find them, and think to ourselves, "If only the other side would just see as clearly as I and this author do this problem would not exist!" Or we find an author with whom we disagree and attack him so fiercely because we somehow feel that if we can debase the author we can debase the view with which we disagree.

Shelby Steele has been misused in both those ways. He has chosen a hard road because he writes sincere, thoughtful, and passionate essays that do not merely support or oppose widely held beliefs. Yes, he is attacked as if he were merely a water carrier for the GOP or praised as if all he were about were attacking affirmative action. He is far more subtle than this! Please take the time to read him carefully because there is so much more to gain from his writing, whether or not you end up agreeing with him.

This book consists of one very long and three shorter essays. I hate to summarize the ideas in the essay because they are more thoughtful than any summary I can give and the mere mention of the subjects involved will likely provoke a polarized response to a position already held. What I will say is that if you force yourself to put aside your already firmly held views ad read these wonderful essays with an open mind, you can find insights that can move you to new thinking and attitudes.

The best advice I can give you is to look for how he is challenging your presently held views rather than only noticing how he is challenging those with whom you already disagree. No matter which part of the political spectrum you currently inhabit, you will find a great deal of challenging and edifying writing here that will provide very nutritious food for thought on this important and sadly painful topic.

I agree heartily with Shelby Steele that black America has been forced into a detour by the set-aside culture. However, Steele as of now couches his arguments in a way that will only preach to the converted, when in fact he could have wider influence. Steele appears to consider black leaders' addiction to set-asides as a "political ploy" when in fact it is based on a genuine misconception that racism is a decisive hindrance to all black lives. Many black readers, in response to Steele's points about democracy and incentive and contingency, consider such things irrelevant in the face of Rodney King, profiling, and the myth that most black people are poor. As it happens, Steele's points are valid even in the face of these things, but I wish he would write a third book where he took them by the horns. Otherwise, people he might have some impact on are more likely to reject him as not knowing "what's really going down".

If you read THE CONTENT OF OUR CHARACTER, you're likely to think that A DREAM DEFERRED is published by the Department of Redundancy Department. Yes, there is no doubt that A DREAM DEFERRED is an elaboration of THE CONTENT OF OUR CHARACTER. However, I for one, have not tired of Steele's central thesis. In addition, Steele is a brilliant writer. I never tire of good writing.

A DREAM DEFERRED reminds me of a rather poignant experience I had with an Ohio State University doctoral student. Three of us were sitting together over some coffee. Two of us were white male graduates, while the third was a Native American graduate student. He lamented the racial discrimination he faced with one particular professor. My colleague and I were quite distressed with the comments from this young man. We had some power and could do something about this unsavory situation. With some prodding, the young man eventually told us who the professor was. Upon hearing the name, puzzlement came over our faces, then a smirk. We were both familiar with the professor in question. He was terse, pompous and arrogant - all common characteristics of doctoral faculty. However, he was NOT a racist. We were able to convince the young man that his experience was not racially motivated but rather the professor was simply a jerk. No, he wasn't a racist; he merely treated everyone like trash.

A DREAM DEFERRED provides the basis for whites to understand the predicament faced by many minorities. They have difficulty distinguishing between social activities that are racially motivated and social activities that emerge as stressful but have no elements of racial bias. Steele suggests that whites must stand firm. Funny thing is -- Steele is well aware that most white will not follow his directions. African Americans must take the lead.

Mr. Steele has made me re-think the wisdom of blindly accepting the "party line" of black politics in America. I do not agree with all of his ideas. However, many of his views are worthy of careful consideration by blacks and white. Regretably, many blacks will not even listen [and do not want others to listen] to alternative views like those expressed by Mr. Steele. Mr. Steele should continue to make us think critically about other views of this thorny issue. I find Mr. Steele to be brilliant and a valuable asset to the black intelligentsia in America and the world. Keep up the good work. I am black person who has lived all my life in the "slavery border" State of Missouri (where active racism is alive and well). I have never thought of myself as a conservaitve. However, I look forward to reading and purchasing other books written by Mr. Steele in the future.

Mr. Steele makes an eloquent case that "redemptive liberalism," designed not to actually correct problems but to assuage guilt for past sins, has not solved any of the problems of the black underclass, and in fact, is simply a form of lip service used by liberals and black power mongers. He makes clear, and argues persuasively, that "individual rights," not "group rights" are what made this country great and what the Constitution guaranteed and was designed to protect. (Readers of Ayn Rand's works will recognize the same championing of the individual and individual rights in Mr. Steele's book). I believe the depth of his arguments make a factual, logical, objective, and unemotional debate against his position extremely difficult. If a white author had written this book he or she would have be attacked, dismissed, and verbally lynched by the liberals and black power elite. Mr. Steele defines himself as a "black conservative," which most people would consider an oxymoron. The fact that he is a black man, and therefore could not possibly be considered a racist (as a white person writing exactly the same words would be) probably keeps the liberal media, liberal politicians, and the black power elite from mounting an attack on his work...which in turn simply reinforces his arguments!

I believe so strongly in the conclusions of this book that I am seriously considering sending a copy to every Senator and Congressman in the United States. It's that good and it's that important...for all of us.

"A Dream Deferred" is imperative reading for anyone wrestling with the issue of the justice of racial preferences. While Steele believes that racial preferences defy the best democratic principles of our country, this book reaches more profoundly than that argument. Steele offers a powerful analysis of why racial politics remain so compelling, even as their practical effect is to work against their purported goal of freedom and equality. He argues that today's racial politics are the product of a "redemptive liberalism" born in the 1960's out of white America's newfound shame and desperate need to expiate it. This redemptive liberalism kindled a "grievance elite", with whom they struck the bargain of racial preferences, simultaneously providing redemption (largely symbolic) for white America and power (largely symbolic) for the grievance elite. Unfortunately, the policies arising from this bargain are necessarily iconographic rather than truly effective. Worse than that, the dynamics of the resulting racial politics put the appearance of racial virtue at such a premium that principles are sacrificed (the very principles that could foster an actual solution), and critics are a priori denied any moral authority to criticize. Groups formed to address once-legitimate grievances too easily become institutions whose continued self-interest depends on suppressing their members as individuals, and in perpetuating the grievances they are meant to address. Along the way, Steele suggests some interesting parallels to the rise of Soviet communism and Nazi Germany, and makes some interesting distinctions between FDR-style liberal politics and post-sixties liberal politics. He ultimately broadens his analysis to find that the success of racial identity politics has inspired the spread of a whole market in redemption for any group that can claim to be aggrieved. This enlightening diagnosis rings all too true.

Another great book by an intelligent observer of the hopes and failures of the civil rights movement for blacks, run mostly by whites with lots of hidden agendas and feelings of guilt.

Steele uses words that are unique to him or have other meanings to the rest of us(ulteriority, agency, atavism). These, with the intensity of his presentation, will have the careful reader going back over each thought to insure comprehension. His approach, in essay form without an index, is simple and repetitive. We have gotten off course since the early civil rights days. Liberals have granted extensive preferences to minorities through affirmative action programs, welfare without accountability, etc. In ignoring personal responsibility these have become counter-incentives for achieving true racial equality. Leaders of these programs have a greater interest in their existance than in their results. Tellingly, Steele notes that where blacks have done best, sports, music, literature, ability, not preferences, have brought rewards. He also points out that dissenters to liberal racial policies attract charges of racism that are difficult if not impossible to survive. What Steele doesn't do in this thought-provoking book is give us much of an idea of approaches that might speed up the achievement of racial harmony in our country.

This is a need read book. Insightful and bravely done.Gives a person a glimse into the mind set of the left and how a once much needed influence in our society has gone amuck.

The book was in excellent shape. I purchased it for my daughter for a reading assignment. The book arrived at the time it was due. I received a nice book for a good price.