Hard Left (Hardcover)

by Tavis Smiley (Author) "In December 1994, Time magazine came out with their roster of America's most promising leaders under the age of forty, something they do every twenty..." (more)
Key Phrases: nonunanimous jury verdicts, flat tax, Black Americans, African Americans, Christian Coalition (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Kirkus Reviews
Liberal pulpit-pounding from a young master of the exploding what's-wrong-with- America genre. ``People are tired of being preached to, from the Left and Right,'' talk-radio host Smiley observes. That said, he does an awful lot of preaching in this short book, in which he aims to convert his audience to Democratic populism through a mix of folksy exhortation (``well, we'd darn well better raise our voices quickly before the rhetoric of the Right overwhelms us all'') and broad-view oratory (``whites today weren't responsible for slavery. But they have indirectly benefitted from the racial inequality and economic injustice that arose out of it''). In measured moments, Smiley offers sensible observations on the desirability of consensus-building and unification; drawing on his background as a poor black in a largely white area of rural Indiana, near the national headquarters of the KKK, he insists that people of all ethnicities can get along and form an equitable political coalition. He also gives credit where it is due, allowing that when conservatives ``talk about the moral fabric of our country being torn apart and the need for a return to family values, they are right.'' Still, for Smiley the left is the Democratic Party, the right the Republicans, which leaves an awful lot of political territory unexplored, and he is too obviously impressed by his own influence (``the real power in this country today is in the media,'' he avers) to be entirely convincing. Some of his facts are questionable, too--he claims, for instance, that while smoking kills half a million Americans a year, illegal drugs produce only 3,000 deaths, which seems a gross undercalculation. But no matter: Smiley is on a roll throughout this book, and his enthusiasm for his cases bears his arguments along even when pure logic doesn't. In the end, the preaching is directed to the choir, no matter how good the oratory may be. -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Review
Tavis Smiley is the liberal's answer to talk radio conservatives. Smiley routinely takes on the political right and beats them at their own game. In Hard Left he presents an impassioned polemic that will shape the Democratic platform and the political debate at the Summer 1996 Democratic and Republic National conventions. Those on the left have a radio personality with fresh ideas to counter the outrageous barbs of conservatives like Newt Gingrich and Rush Limbaugh who have cowed Capitol Hill and dominated talk radio. Smiley (who is himself an articulate Black man) is particularly harsh on Black conservatives like Ken Hamblin and Armstrong Williams (who he feels have betrayed the Black community). But Smiley isn't afraid to take on traditional politics-as-usual liberals as well. Smiley says it was the liberals' determined refusal to acknowledge the flaws of social programs and policies (from affirmative action to welfare) that gave conservatives the opening they needed to rechart the nation's course. Now, Smiley warns, that course has taken America dangerously close to the rocky shoals of the extreme right. Hard Left is a clarion call for liberal politicians and leaders to pick themselves up off the ground, tear a page out of the conservative playbook, and counter the conservative offensive by tackling the political and racial issues that go to the core of our society. Hard Left is a welcome contribution to today's national political dialogue! -- Midwest Book Review

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Doubleday (May 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385484046
• ISBN-13: 978-0385484046
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,628,899 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Straight talk, still true, April 20, 2002

By	Josh Dougherty (Philadelphia) - See all my reviews

I've just had the opportunity to read this book, six years later. Even as some of the specifics, like the "Contract on America" period, have wound up on the dust-bin of history, all the basic themes are all still operative today. "Hard Left" is a concise and accessible overview of a number of issues that still face America, and recommended for anyone who listens to the arguments of the Right and feels that something just isn't, well...right.

A number of the 1-star reviewers here complain about "emotional arguments" (since emotion is not a part of humanity to be considered or discussed) or the lack of pages of extensive empirical data are missing the point. It's "Straight Talk" to regular Americans, not a statistical study and presentation. There's no shortage of books you could find in that vein. The form here is conversational, the way people talk to each other one on one. In this form, the book makes its' points well and is worth the read.

10 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book was fantastic. I could not put it down., April 29, 1998

By A Customer

I was never very political until I started reading this book and I realized that I if don't vote I can't complain when the person I want does not win. I now understand more about the inner workings of the political arena. I will let my voice be heard and make my views know. I think that Tavis Smiley is an excellent spokes(person) and very in tune to the needs and the thinking of the black community. Thank you and keep up the great work.

8 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Typical responses from critics, February 18, 2001

By	Eugenia Slater (Portland, Oregon United States) - See all my reviews

This book was written the way Tavis speaks, intelligently. A lot of people close their ears and eyes when it comes to hearing the truth about what they can't experience and understand so they'd rather belittle Smiley's point of view and experiences to "reverse" racism or tiresome rhetoric. But then nothing more is expected from those who walk through life privileged. Even the most liberal white man could never understand the plight of minorities, let alone conservatives, the party of I-have-mine-screw-you.