The fire next time
by James Baldwin · first published 1962
71% recommend29% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Short, intellectually rich essays on race in America that readers find more complete and insightful than modern popular books on the subject. Also wrestles with religion and the Nation of Islam. Suits Baldwin newcomers.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
From Amazon.com: A national bestseller when it first appeared in 1963, The Fire Next Time galvanized the nation and gave passionate voice to the emerging civil rights movement. At once a powerful evocation of James Baldwin's early life in Harlem and a disturbing examination of the consequences of racial injustice, the book is an intensely personal and provocative document. It consists of two "letters," written on the occasion of the centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation, that exhort Americans, both black and white, to attack the terrible legacy of racism. Described by The New Yo
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…continued founding myths, but in the many unheralded acts of sacrifice and resistance that so many of it’s marginalized citizens made and continue to make down to this very minute. James Baldwin’s “The Fire Next Time”, or his “No Name in the Street” layout both how the country was brought to the reckoning of the Civil Rights movement and then completely capitulated to white supremacy. Frederick Douglass’s “What to…
on “The Fourth of July” ↗…the Klan was his brought out by personal and systematic suffering. The hate, the bias, the intolerance would have just been a simple copy/paste of terms. I got volumes more out of James Baldwin's "The Fire Next Time".
on “Ask HN: Which books have made you introspect?” ↗I recently read my first two Baldwin books (Go Tell It On The Mountain and The Fire Next Time) and in both cases I was blown away by the completeness of his treatment of racism at a time when black people were fighting for much more basic civil rights. I also recently read some of the popular…
on “Why James Baldwin Still Matters” ↗A People’s History of the US A Pattern Language The Alphabet Vs The Goddess Aloud: Voices From the Nuyorican Poets Cafe The Fire Next Time
on “Ask HN: What books changed the way you think about almost everything?” ↗…is not "all bad." I personally would judge its good works to be more crippled by its doctrine than most faiths. If you want to read a good thinking wrestling with the Nation of Islam I recommend The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin. I think he does a good job of capturing the contradictions and attractions of Elijah Muhammad (another undeniably hateful man) in the flesh. [1] 1 Corinthians 14:34, NIV
on “Facebook Bans Louis Farrakhan, Milo Yiannopoulos, InfoWars and Others” ↗The Fire Next Time — James Baldwin Between the World and Me — Coates (back-to-back) The Scar — China Mieville The Alphabet vs the Goddess – Shlain
on “Ask HN: Books you read in 2018?” ↗Absolutely 100% agreed. Last night I shared a few books to instagram with a very similar message as yours. Along with Coates, I’d love to also recommend James Baldwin’s “The Fire Next Time” and “Democracy in Black” by Eddie Glauer for anyone interested and looking for reading material (and just about anything with and or by Cornel West and or bell hooks-these last two have collaborated…
…black. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zL_IX8yX_JU [4] How cops are trained to shoot you in your home. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuzQrbio2Qw Other resources include James Baldwin's books and documentaries. His 'The Fire Next Time' is just 120 pages [5]. 'The Price of the Ticket' and 'I Am Not Your Negro' are good documentaries [6][7]. [5] https://www.amazon.com/Fire-Next-Time-James-Baldwin/dp/06797... [6] https://www.amazon.com/James-Baldwin-Price-Ticket/dp/B01M25W...…
on “Google’s approach to Black schools explains why there's few Black engs in Tech” ↗…https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zL_IX8yX_JU [4] How cops are trained to shoot you in your home. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuzQrbio2Qw Other resources include James Baldwin's books and documentaries. His 'The Fire Next Time' is just 120 pages [5]. 'The Price of the Ticket' and 'I Am Not Your Negro' are good documentaries [6][7]. [5] https://www.amazon.com/Fire-Next-Time-James-Baldwin/dp/06797... [6] https://www.amazon.com/James-Baldwin-Price-Ticket/dp/B01M25W...…
on “Google HR 'suggested medical leave' for racism victims” ↗…https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zL_IX8yX_JU [4] How cops are trained to shoot you in your home. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuzQrbio2Qw Other resources include James Baldwin's books and documentaries. His 'The Fire Next Time' is just 120 pages [5]. 'The Price of the Ticket' and 'I Am Not Your Negro' are good documentaries [6][7]. [5] https://www.amazon.com/Fire-Next-Time-James-Baldwin/dp/06797... [6] https://www.amazon.com/James-Baldwin-Price-Ticket/dp/B01M25W...…
on “You can't censor away extremism or any other problem” ↗The Argonauts by Maggie Nelson A Life's Work by Rachel Cusk The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin We Real Cool by bell hooks
on “Ask HN: What is the most mind expanding book(s) you have read till date?” ↗…canons. There ARE lists of Great Books from Asian, Black, Central and South America. While a black canon is being developed, there certainly are great books by black men and women. James Baldwin’s, The Fire Next Time, E. Franklin Frazier’s, Black Bourgeoisie, Cater G. Woodson’s, The Mis-Education of the Negro. Frederick Douglass is a particular hero of mine. Asian Literary canon may include: 、Pre-Imperial and Early…
on “Are 'Great Books' Obsolete?” ↗Amazing writer. If you haven't yet, please read The Fire Next Time for an understanding of racial issues in America, and a love-based solution
on “What the Church Meant for James Baldwin” ↗The Fire Next Time - a book everyone should make time for. Short. Brilliant. Until I read I never grasped the utter lack of integrity in the world around me.
on “Why James Baldwin Still Matters” ↗+1 to The Fire Next Time God gave Noah the rainbow sign -- no more water, The Fire Next Time I found the book to be much more intellectual and insightful compared to modern pop-race-psychology or whatever the latest wave of…
on “What the Church Meant for James Baldwin” ↗