by Joy-Ann Reid
First published 2015
Joy-Ann Reid investigates why Barack Obama's presidency failed to deliver the racial unity many Americans expected. The MSNBC correspondent traces how Obama seemed constrained when discussing race, leaving supporters frustrated while opponents attacked. Reid examines the complex dynamics between Obama and Bill and Hillary Clinton, showing how their different approaches to racial issues reflect broader tensions within the Democratic Party. She explores the party's evolution on race from the civil rights era through Obama's presidency, featuring key figures like Shirley Chisholm, Jesse Jackson, John Lewis, and Al Sharpton. Reid analyzes how events like Trayvon Martin's killing and the Ferguson and Baltimore uprisings exposed America's continuing divisions. The book addresses critical questions about Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign, including whether she would embrace or reject Obama's legacy, how her racial politics differ from her husband's and Obama's, and whether minority voters would support her candidacy in large numbers.
Genres: african-american, non-fiction, biography-memoir, 21st-century, current-affairs, american-history
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: political-thriller
Setting: America, Ferguson, Baltimore
Period: Civil Rights Era, Obama Presidency
399 pages · Kindle Edition · Mariner Books