Volunteer Slavery: My Authentic Negro Experience [Paperback]

Jill Nelson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1994

When Jill Nelson became the first black woman to write for The Washington Post's prestigious Sunday magazine in 1986, she thought she had entered journalism heaven. But the magazine proved to be insulting to black readers, not to mention its black staffers. Here Nelson gives a scalding expose of one of our most respected newspapers.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Nelson's entertaining, vitriolic memoir of her stint as the first black female writer at The Washington Post Sunday magazine.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Nelson writes of her experience as an African American woman working for one of the most prestigious newspapers in the country. Recruited in 1986 to write for the new Sunday magazine of the Washington Post , Nelson moved to Washington with both misgivings and hope. From the disastrous premier issue of the Sunday magazine that alienated and angered most of black Washington to her assignment covering the trial of Washington mayor Marion Barry, Nelson documents her growing sense of frustration and powerlessness. Interwoven with her professional story are her reflections on a lifelong struggle between her identity as an upper-middle-class black woman and her search for the "authentic Negro experience." Mixing comedy with tragedy, Nelson raises questions about the meaning of success. Luckily, Nelson emerges as a survivor, and her story will entertain, enrage, educate, and engage the reader. Volunteer Slavery is highly recommended.
- Judy Solberg, Univ. of Maryland Libs., College Park
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (July 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 014023716X
• ISBN-13: 978-0140237160
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #317,424 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An insightful book., March 26, 2000

By 

DBW (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Volunteer Slavery: My Authentic Negro Experience (Paperback)

As an African-American journalist, I found Jill Nelson's book to be very real. Those who criticize the book because Nelson strikes them as naive are missing the point, on at least two levels.

In the first place, though she naturally gets into certain generalities, the book is primarily about HER experience. It's not intended to be a handbook for reporters who are climbing the corporate ladder. Given her past, and her particular personality, this is the story of how she happened to react to a specific set of circumstances. How one judges her actions should be different from the way someone judges the book itself.

And secondly, to the extent that the book does have a larger intent, it calls for the dismantling of an outrageously unfair system. Should we all just accept the status quo, and find clever ways to navigate our way past pettiness and stupidity, or strive for a sane alternative?

The fact is that Nelson has done just fine since she left the Post. Viewed in that context, the book is a testament to her courage, and her insistence on personal dignity.

28 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A rare combination of self-pity that still makes you laugh, December 15, 1999

By 

Tom Butler "draftleader" (tallahassee, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Volunteer Slavery: My Authentic Negro Experience (Paperback)

The only other author I ever read who so effectively combined self-pity and wry humor was Erica Jong. Jill Nelson turns a wicked phrase and makes her characters and her situations jump to life. I laughed aloud at her description of her teenage daughter telling her "Mom, get a life!" in response to her lecturing about black conciousness. All through the book I kept wondering where Ms. Nelson's gripes came from. Because her dad left her mom for a white woman, as recounted in the book? She grew up in plush surroundings, with summers on Martha's Vineyard. As the number of unread pages shrank, I kept wondering if Ku Kluxers in white sheets were going to suddenly show up in the book to explain her bitter feelings about white males. Ms. Nelson said that white men are priveleged, but believe me, we too can be put through the grinder. I'm also a former newspaper reporter, born the same year as Ms. Nelson. When she complained about her reporting duries at the Washington Post, saying "I was too old to chase fire engines," I had to laugh. That's exactly what I was doing at another paper at the time she said that. I don't buy what Jill Nelson says, but I did enjoy the way she tells it.

3.0 out of 5 stars indulgent but still a good read, December 15, 2011

By 

max555 - See all my reviews

This review is from: Volunteer Slavery: My Authentic Negro Experience (Paperback)

I enjoyed this memoir, but I did find it very self indulgent. The author lives a life of privilege, yet seems to wallow in self pity, never acknowledging how much better off she is than many other people of color. I can hardly believe she would be surprised to find that a corporate media outlet like the Washington Post is racist and stifling. She is also very superficial and elitist, and ranks people by what they look like how much they weigh, what clothes they wear, etc. Never once does she acknowledge solidarity with other oppressed peoples or express compassion for anyone but herself and her circle, outside of referring to herself as a "race woman" and flatteringly categorizing herself with people like Harriet Tubman, and Thurgood Marshall. Also she seemingly has no concept that anyone exists outside of the U.S. concepts of black and white. Often her snark is also annoying and un-funny but that's what kept me reading I wanted to see if she ever changes or examines herself more deeply but it does not happen. Still an interesting and quick read.