Stakes Is highking

Important argument I ve ever read Delusions tackles the idea that cultural touchstones arise independent of any ideology or agenda Smith notes that even highways are political when you stop to question whose homes were destroyed to make way for them Justice provides an erudite argumentor why we must abolish the police in order to attain peace His definition of justice is particularly insightful justice is a proactive commitment to providing each person with the material and social conditions in which they can both survive and thrive as a healthy and self actualized human being Police can do two things.

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One of the best critiques of America as it stands right now Succinct Clear Searing There is no coddling of the reader against the truths that are presented It s Baldwin esque It s brilliant. Stakes is high de la soul Reread still holds up Still incredible Read this book 9781568588735 A powerful work of nonfiction about the falseness of the American Dream and what we must do as a country to combat our longstanding adherence to white supremacy patriarchy and capitalism Mychal Denzel Smith s tone is disillusioned whicheels appropriate given the many issues he writes about with passion and conviction the grotesqueness of prisons the pervasiveness of rape culture the injustices perpetuated by police and Toward the end he admits that the election of Donald Trump though only a symptom of the United States alignment with white supremacy contributed to his struggle with depression At the same time Smith shows through this work that through acknowledging how bad things really are we may then take action to make them better even if at times we still feel hopeless. Stakes is high release date Because I read research and organize around a lot of the topics in this book I did not feel like I learned much new information I still enjoyed reading this book because of the way Smith integrates these subjects of social justice and connects them to his own perspective like how he observes gentrification and the proliferation of policing in New York City At times I wanted a bit focus or depth because each section tends to cover a range of topics in fluid ways Still I d recommend this book to those who want a powerful call to action that targets the interlocking systems of oppression that pervade the United States 9781568588735 A fresh modern thrilling callor humanity to come together as well as a brilliant investigation into what it means to be an American Stakes Is High is required reading 9781568588735 These are good and insightful essays but they don t really amount to a whole book I like his voice and I could read his essays all day but I am not sure there was a unifying theme 9781568588735 Originally published on my book blog TheBibliophage. Stakes Is highking Mychal Denzel Smith crafted a group of stunning essays in his new book Stakes is High Life After the American Dream These essays are so spot on and relevant to current events as to be fully prescient When in fact they re discussing complex conditions that have existed for a ridiculously long time. High stakes high mountain trackers book 2 Raised in Virginia Smith moved to New York City as a young man Much of his essays are NYC centric simply because he lives there It s hisrame of thought but in no way a coastal elite perspective And there are plenty of moments that encompass issues people in all areas will relate to. Stakes is high de la soul lyrics The myth of the American DreamLike so many essays published recently this book starts with Smith s reaction to the 2016 election results So naturally he analyzes our current president and administration But rather than addressing specific political actions he considers how the 2016 election was a function of the myth of the American Dream. Danielle steel book high stakes S Collectively we sufferrom the long term personal and political effects of this myth We re taught that all you have to do is work hard and you can attain that dream And people of color are taught how much harder they must work to reach those goals Personally Smith discusses what happens when people get demoralized by the myth Then politically he reminds us that expecting politicians to solve problems and deliver on the myth will never happen. Stakes is high dilla This essay is the most political although the myth threads its way throughout the book Smith discusses the way we elect presidents hello Electoral College and why we put so much stake in who that one person in our government is When in fact the government is so much Adding the story of Shirley Chisholm s political career to the mix here brings weight to Smith s conclusions. Stakes is high instrumental Here s also where a lot of his Trump commentary comes in because Trump is an example of one man creating an American Dream myth about his life When contrary to the myth his money and success depended on a huge inheritance and possibly shadyinancing And the average person particularly a person of color never would have that opportunity because of centuries of systemic racism and oppression. High stakes test pdf A variety of topicsIn 6 short essays Smith hits hard over and over He discusses Dr Martin Luther King Jr and his legacy He illuminates what it is but importantly what it isn t And in one related section Smith reminds us that uprisings led by oppressed people are not new But they aren t taught in most history lessons Or they re taught with a unbalanced perspective We think they re happening for theirst time but that s not so. Danielle steel book high stakes Smith essays are wide ranging as well Yes he addresses justice versus patriotism For example the seemingly simple question of why there are few publicly available trash cans in his Brooklyn neighborhood but plenty of police presence Smith then extends this and questions the concept of protect and serve versus police as soldiers in battle. Stakes is high release date Again using his city as an example Smith considers the effect of a primarily cashless society on the homeless When we carry no cash to give to that person living on our corner Or what happens when the homeless person scrounges a few bills and can t use them to buy a few things at the corner bodega because it takes only plastic. Stakes Is highkicks Jumping into gender and itsluid possibilities Smith talks about the cis gender heteronormative culture of the American Dream myth He discusses its negative effects on trans people and especially trans women of color. Stakes is high de la soul My conclusionsI ll just leave you with one quote from my heavily highlighted copy although I d love to share many This may change in all or part in the book when it s released Where America hasucked up is by telling the myth as history pretending that who we want to be is who we have always been then building a proud and belligerent national identity out of the myth American myths obscure a shameful past and protect the powerful Smith covers so much ground From poverty and homelessness to racism classism and how all of these things play into the rise of Donald Trump His retelling is honest radical and necessary Not just for this moment in time but in all moments in time Smith does not shout but it would be okay if he did He ponders analyzes and connects events to emotion And then he uses his writing to shout or as the saying goes speak truth to power It is precisely because the stakes are so high that we need to slough off this American dream myth deal with the brutal realities of our culture and do what is necessary to make change For me in my fifties I m not protesting for myself I do it for my multiracial kids and grandkids and for the world they are inheriting. High stakes high mountain trackers book 2 AcknowledgementsMany thanks to NetGalley Perseus Books Public Affairs Bold Type Books and the author for a digital advanced reader s copy in exchange for this honest review 9781568588735 Winner of the 2020 Kirkus Prize for Nonfiction Brave clear eyed and passionate Stakes Is High is the book we need to guide us past crisis mode and through an uncertain future The events of the past decade have forced us to reckon with who we are and who we want to be We have been invested in a set of beliefs about our American identity our exceptionalism the inevitable rightness of our path the promise that hard work and determination will carry us to freedom But in Stakes Is High Mychal Denzel Smith confronts the shortcomings of these stories and with the American Dream itself and calls on us to live up to the principles we profess but fail to realize In a series of incisive essays Smith exposes the stark contradictions at the heart of American life holding all of us individually and as a nation to account We ve gotten used to looking away but the fissures and casual violence of institutional oppression are ever present There is a future that is not as grim as our past In this profound work Smith helps us envision it with care honesty and imagination Stakes Is High Life After the American DreamAn incredibly cogent call to revolution The author is perhaps a cynic at heart like me but makes a great case that no matter how messed up this country is it s not too late to change if everyone digs in and does the work of facing and dismantling our systems of oppression The so called American Dream is something that has never really been available to anyone Mychal Denzel Smith eloquently explains how the American Dream is just a myth told as history and why that is so dangerous It s what made Trumpism inevitable and why we have to reverse course as fast as we can A timely book that I hope will be widely read I received a Review Copy of this book via NetGalley 9781568588735 Contrary to what personal finance charlatans would have us believe poverty is not a mindset it is the inevitable and necessary by product of a system wherein life is only guaranteed to those who have wealth and wealth is distributed via ownership and not labor Poverty is a capitalists s main resource as it ensures there will always be a class of people to exploit Special thanks to Bold Type Books for the gifted finished copy of this marvelous book STAKES IS HIGH is out today and I believe it s one that we re gonna be referencing for a long time to come Mychal Denzel Smith divides his book into four parts Delusions Justice Accountability and Freedom each of which breaks down the American Dream into its unsatisfactory and contradictory components Through these sections Smith sets out to argue that this moment in American history is not an aberration that it is the course this country has always been on because the power of the narrative we have all contributed to has propelled us here It s perhaps the most compelling arrest or kill and neither of those is going to deliver justice In Accountability through the example of the crime of rape Smith explains the difference between apology and accountability and why the latter is not being held up as the standard in our society For that to be the case would require a vastly different system of adjudication Smith builds on Angela Davis s argument that prisons are obsolete and provides an honest examination of our own shortcomings. Stakes is high dilla In Freedom Smith traces his family history back to slavery and uses this framework to analyze the contradictions and impossibilities of America s individualistic freedoms Freedom should not require luck and so none of us are free Smith notes that writing this book did not cure his Trump era depression and reading it sure as hell didn t cure mine But I found a kindred spirit in Smith s words which at least made me feel less alone in my despair at the world maybe even optimistic He doesn t profess to have all of the answers but to suggest that the most important thing we can do in this moment is to come together as a community We must choose us he writes Reading this collection reminded me of what that means He also urges that he d like the main takeaway from this book to be that we need to my goodness we need to abolish the police so I ll include that here as well Abolish the police there is no clearer way to say it This is perhaps the most important book I ve read this year and it should be required reading for every American or anyone looking at us dumbfounded If my funds allowed ha I would gift a copy of this collection to everyone I know 9781568588735 A very good call to arms and critique of the state of the nation It s not pretty but Smith s wide lens view is smart and lays out the root of American problems succinctly shining a hard light on endemic racism toxic masculinity capitalism the justice system politics and the longstanding delusion labeled the American dream There are no easy answers or binary rhetoric which makes this a good book to read right now How we got to this place or the place we were at when Smith wrote the book which is just short of this even harsher point in time is not easily answerable but it is understandable and he does a good job of making the case for a broad and deep revolution 9781568588735 My biggest problem with this book was its lack of a clear underlying theme In other words this book was all over the place I wish Mychal Denzel Smith spent time concentrating on one topic at a time Here we have many bold ideas but not much information on how to successfully implement them This book reads like a work of nonfiction with a lot of passion behind it and that is completely understandable given the time we live in I just wish there was information on practical implementation of the author s very legitimate concerns and ideas Having said that I am glad I ve read it This is a short read that will benefit everyone 9781568588735 Woahhhh Talk about an unflinching CRITIQUE of the myths lies andragility around the American Dream 9781568588735 .