Latest Book Review – Ebonyonline.net Book Club

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness

By Michelle Alexander, published by The New Press. Price £19.99

Karl Marx reminds us that the two agents of capitalism are lawyers and accountants, if he is right, this book leads us to believe that White America is doing all it can to use its legal apparatus to shut out Black America from the benefits of capitalism.

I have never understood the Messianic way African Americans welcomed the Hilary Clinton presidential bid in 2016 because of her complicity in the School to Prison Pipeline Program of her husband’s administration in the 1990s that condemned so many young blacks to prison, some with very questionable evidence.

To the uninitiated of the racial undertones of American politics, Michelle Alexander takes you through a steep learning curve, looking at Jim Crow and its demise and rebirth, Mass Incarceration, All White Juries, the drug menace (Operation Pipeline, under Ronald Reagan) that fuelled shootings and anarchy.

The book looks at arguments for and against affirmative action and it will be interesting to have a similar work here in the UK looking at progress made here in the UK on the McPherson Report on Institutional racism.

‘Issues of Manhood in Black and White’ – ‘ An Incisive Look into Masculinity and Societal Definition of Afrikan (sic} Man’
by Dr Amos Wilson, published by Afrikan World InfoSystems (AWIS), New York, 2016. Priced at £17.50.
Executive Editor Sababu N. Plata and his team at AWIS, should be commended for ensuring that the above work see the light of day more than two and half decades after the death of Dr Amos Wilson.

The Jim Crow laws has done untold damage to the African American male compared to the white male in the area of mass incarceration. Wilson’s foresight in analysing some of these issues all those years ago re-establishes him as one of the great thinkers of the last century. In this work, Wilson tackles such issues as Crime and Export Patriotism, Feminised Power Masquerading as Strength, White Mismanagement Normalised, Afrikan Education in Imperialistic Schools, and many more.

‘Wilson advances a continental Afrikan paradigm worthy of discussion and applicability to Diasporan males, one that dovetails with female understanding of black males …..’

Other titles by the writer also available include,’ Falsification of Afrikan Consciousness’, ‘The Developmental Psychology of the Black Child’, ‘Awakening the Natural Genius of the Black Child’, ‘Understanding Black Male Adolescent Violence’ and ‘Black on Black Violence’.

From Babylon to Timbuktu. A History of Ancient Black Races Including the Black Hebrews
by Rudolph R. Windsor, published by Windsor Golden Series Price £13.50
Although first published in 1969, this book that offers originality of thought in the historical analysis of the the black race is a valuable resource to all students of black history and culture.
It re-emphasises the African origin of Christianity, which had its roots in Ethiopia, a modern Africa state, occupied briefly during the second world war, but never colonised by the White race.

Just as Timbuktu was noted for its literary prowess where book publishing was a major economic activity, Herodotus also reports that at his time Egyptians were ‘specialists in the medical field and the country swarmed with medical practitioners’.

Windsor recounts that Egypt, the most remarkable black civilisation in ancient times had Imhotep, recognised worldwide as a sage, priest, philosopher, poet, scribe, magician, astronomer, and architect in this book which was first published in 1969.

The reasons for the .’Great Humiliation’ Egypt suffered in the 15th and 16th dynasty is analysed. The Black Jews presence and contribution to civilisation in the whole of Africa from the West, East and North Africa presents the reader much needed knowledge rarely found in a single book.

Title: Traditional and Religious Plants of West Africa
By Daniel Abbiw, published by Smartline Limited. Price £34.99
A well researched work looking at the power of plants as a healing tool not only physically but in the spiritual realms as well. That animals have souls is not an unintelligible assumption.

This is not Abbiw’s first work in this area, having announced himself with his first work entitled Useful Plants in Ghana in 1990. In this ground breaking work he looks at plants used for ceremonial occasions, plants for charms, child birth, curing various diseases, fertility, popularity and success, love, marriage, warding-off evil, economic activities and many many more.

In Medico-Magical Treatment, Abbiw states ”instances of medico-magical treatment of disease is practised in Africa and elsewhere. This is the application of magical means against disease, afflictions, dangerous persons, charms, spells and so on. Usually these ‘medicines’ do not work without a continuous renewal of their magical power by sacrifices on these objects (that is the part of the blood drips on the medicine.}”

This work is a useful tool to both professional and amateur practitioners of homeopathic medicine.

All Titles are available from Pempamsie, 102 Briton Hill Road, London SW2 1AH Tel: 020 8671 0800, or WordPower Books, Email: centerprisewp91@gmail.com, Tel: 07964843717

Reviewer E. Datsievor Amevor (FCCA), is a writer, cultural entrepreneur, financial analyst and consultant at Rocksons, Chartered Certified Accountants, Barking, London.