First published 2020
Bakari Sellers examines the American South through the lens of his hometown Denmark, South Carolina, weaving together personal narrative with broader cultural examination. He traces his father's journey from civil rights activism alongside Stokely Carmichael and Martin Luther King to membership in the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee. Sellers documents the challenges facing rural black communities whose roots stretch back seven generations. He explores how families cope as hospitals close, factories relocate overseas, and economic opportunities vanish. The author focuses on neighbors and relatives who struggle to access healthcare, maintain financial stability, and preserve cultural traditions while their communities shrink. Sellers balances this social documentation with intimate family portraits, honoring his father's influence while reflecting on his hopes for his newborn twins. The book captures both the pride and hardship that define life in one of America's poorest states, giving voice to working class families rarely featured in national conversations.
Genres: african-american, social-issues, non-fiction, biography-memoir, cultural-studies, american-history
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: family-drama, personal-narrative, social-commentary
Setting: Denmark, South Carolina
Period: Civil Rights Movement
227 pages · Hardcover · Amistad