Fascism - An excerpt from “Blood in My Eye”
In this letter written from Soledad Prison in 1971, George Jackson critically explores how fascism in America has developed and how comfortable we have become as a society with the constant suffering and unjust and violence of late-stage capitalism.
The Souls of White Folk
In this 1920 essay, W. E. B Du Bois critically explores the notion of “whiteness,” how it has developed as a psychological and moral phenomenon, and how Black people and the world at large suffer at the hands of white people and the unjust and violent society they created.
Women in Prison: How It Is With Us
This is an article written by Assata Shakur for The Black Scholar and it’s a detailed account of what it means to be a prisoner as a Black woman. It’s impactful and written very straightforwardly with a goal of painting a picture of how Black lives, particular those of poor Black women, are policed and set up for failure within America’s carceral capitalist system.
The Pitfalls of Liberalism
This is an easy to read yet thought-provoking book excerpt written in 1967 by Kwame Ture, a Black revolutionary and key leader of the Black Power movement. This text harshly but truthfully criticizes the actions, or the lack thereof, of the white liberal party. It is a brilliant example of Ture’s ability to push radical thought into action.
On Language, Race, and the Black Writer
This is a short speech given in January 15, 1979 by James Baldwin, a Black gay writer and activist. It is a concise yet thought-provoking lecture outlining the persistence of oppression after the supposed victory of the civil rights movement.