Begin Again Analysis

The assigned readings in the Baldwin book by Prof Glaude: Intro, Chaps 6&7, and the conclusion.

The broad question, of course, is how does Prof. Glaude see Baldwin’s works, especially 1963-1972, as valuable political

thought for African Americans seeking to navigate a progressive way forward beyond Trump and Trumpism? Prof. Glaude

notes the great disappointment that Baldwin felt after the white conservative backlash to the Civil Rights movement/era and its

accomplishments. In history, African Americans felt a similar despair, disappointment following the collapse of Reconstruction and

the emergence of Jim Crow, lynching and racial denial.

Prof. Glaude is highlighting the horror, in terms of racism and white supremacist thought that accompanies Trumpism and in many ways are

at the heart of it. The fascinating question posed by Prof. Glaude, is what can we take from Baldwin’s works and activism, to propell us

forward in what looks like a bleak future.