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This is the fire : what I say to my friends about racism

2021

Format:	Book
Author:	Lemon, Don, 1966- author.
Title:	This is the fire : what I say to my friends about racism / Don Lemon.
Edition:	First edition.
Publisher, Date:	New York : Little, Brown and Company, 2021.
Description:	213 pages ; 22 cm
Summary:	"The host of CNN Tonight with Don Lemon is more popular than ever. As America's only Black prime-time anchor, Lemon and his daily monologues on racism and antiracism, on the failures of the Trump administration and of so many of our leaders, and on America's systemic flaws speak for his millions of fans. Now, in an urgent, deeply personal, riveting plea, he shows us all how deep our problems lie, and what we can do to begin to fix them"-- Provided by publisher.
Subjects:	Racism -- United States. African Americans -- Civil rights. African Americans -- Social conditions. Anti-racism -- United States. United States -- Race relations.
Notes:	Includes bibliographical references (pages 197-202) and index.
Contents:	Prologue: A letter to my nephew -- Do I but dream -- We didn't get here by accident -- My Lord, what a mourning when the stars begin to fall -- Seeking justice in the land of law and order -- Of movies, myths, and monuments -- About the Benjamins -- How change happens.
LCCN:	2020949934
ISBN:	9780316257572 (hardcover) 0316257575 (hardcover)
OCLC:	1240501102
System Availability:	6
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# Local items:	2
# Local items in:	2
Current Holds:	0

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Library Journal Review

Journalist Lemon (CNN Tonight with Don Lemon) candidly reflects on history and the major events of 2020, beginning with a heartfelt letter to his nephew in the wake of George Floyd's murder, describing progress and pitfalls in racial equity since Jim Crow. He argues that readers need to do something, however small, to combat racism and white supremacy in the United States. In order to inspire action, Lemon briefly describes historic events, as well as key stories he covered in 2020, like the COVID-19 pandemic and protests in response to racial injustice. He also provides thoughts and analysis on topics such as police brutality, death, segregation, and reparations. Lemon discusses anecdotes from his own life, including a trip to Ghana with his mother to discover their ancestry, and the tragic death of his sister Leisa. Throughout, he emphasizes empathy and the need for readers to value fellow humans despite their differences. Lemon ends by declaring that we are all capable of doing the work necessary to combat white supremacy. VERDICT A thoughtful analysis which deserves a place on readers' anti-racist reading lists. Recommended for those interested in trying to enact systemic change.--Rebekah Kati, Univ. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Publishers Weekly Review

CNN host Lemon (Transparent) ruminates in this lyrical yet diffuse account on the legacy of white supremacy in America. Emulating James Baldwin's The Fire Next Time and Ta-Nehisi Coates's Between the World and Me, Lemon opens with a letter to his 13-year-old nephew, recounting how his own grandmother, who had a fifth-grade education, had to submit to a literacy test in order to vote in Louisiana. From there, Lemon reflects on the founding of an African American enclave in Sag Harbor in 1947, describes how the election of Donald Trump ("a blatant White supremacist") made the problem of racism "impossible to ignore," and recounts his family's grief in the wake of his sister's accidental death in 2018. He also traces the roots of modern policing to pre--Civil War slave patrols and shares insights from historians and political analysts about the Lost Cause mythology and Jim Crow--era racial segregation. Lemon folds in noteworthy interviews from his TV show and startling statistics about Black mortality and incarceration rates into his personal reflections, but he meanders across well-trod ground, losing some of the thrust of his arguments. Readers will savor the well-honed language, but wish for stronger substance. (Mar.)

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