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My Brother Moochie: Regaining Dignity in the Face of Crime, Poverty, and Racism in the American South
A journalist's raw, first-person account of what his family endured after his eldest brother killed a man and was sentenced to life in prison.
At the age of nine, Issac J. Bailey saw his hero, his eldest brother, taken away in handcuffs, not to return from prison for thirty-two years. Bailey tells the story of their relationship and of his experience living in a family suffering guilt and shame. Drawing on sociological research as well as his expertise as a journalist, he seeks to answer the crucial question of why Moochie and many other young black men—including half of the ten boys in his own family—end up in the criminal justice system. What role did poverty, race, and faith play? What effect did living in the South, in the Bible Belt, have? And why is their experience understood as an acceptable trope for black men, while white people who commit crimes are never seen in this generalized way?
My Brother Moochie provides a wide-ranging yet intensely intimate view of crime and incarceration in the United States, and the devastating effects on the incarcerated, their loved ones, their victims, and society as a whole.
At the age of nine, Issac J. Bailey saw his hero, his eldest brother, taken away in handcuffs, not to return from prison for thirty-two years. Bailey tells the story of their relationship and of his experience living in a family suffering guilt and shame. Drawing on sociological research as well as his expertise as a journalist, he seeks to answer the crucial question of why Moochie and many other young black men—including half of the ten boys in his own family—end up in the criminal justice system. What role did poverty, race, and faith play? What effect did living in the South, in the Bible Belt, have? And why is their experience understood as an acceptable trope for black men, while white people who commit crimes are never seen in this generalized way?
My Brother Moochie provides a wide-ranging yet intensely intimate view of crime and incarceration in the United States, and the devastating effects on the incarcerated, their loved ones, their victims, and society as a whole.
304 pages, Paperback
First published May 29, 2018
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June 20, 2018
This book will challenge you. I agree with Bailey on his notions about ‘remembered trauma’ and how it seeps into the soul of individuals. Recent studies have shown that trauma can actually change the DNA of the traumatized person so that it affects generations. A trauma can be passed on. The implications of this just changes everything, particularly when discussing generations of American black families.
Bailey writes exceptionally well, and he forms an argument so that you can acknowledge points you would surely have argued against. Bailey raises the hard issues. Everything we have talked about to now about mass incarceration and the over-representation of black men in American jails is brought under discussion here. But Bailey is tough. We’re not talking about the wrongly-accused or set-up arrests.
Bailey’s brothers, several of them, were the scourges of his small South Carolina town and spent time—a long time—in prison. One brother, Moochie, was the eldest and was responsible for taking care of the family. The father was a serial abuser and alcoholic, traumatizing the children. When Moochie, defender of the family, was taken away in handcuffs when Issac was nine, Issac’s stress reaction developed into a severe stutter that has lasted his entire life.
Moochie killed a man. He came home one night calling to his brothers to bring him fresh clothes which he changed into. He didn’t get far before he was picked up. Naturally for the place and the time, he was questioned before he was given counsel. Eventually, he admitted his guilt. The whole case was shrouded in secrecy from both the family and the town, the wildest rumors about how the event went down still circulating nearly forty years later.
Moochie’s brother Issac Bailey makes the case that his youngest brothers and Moochie’s own son, a toddler, suffered even more psychological impact. His three youngest brothers and Moochie’s son have all been in conflict with the law since high school, which none of them actually finished.
There is some research showing these very early insults to one’s psyche make long-lasting effects throughout one’s life and cause early deaths among sufferers, should they live so long. Issac Bailey wants us to consider these factors when assigning blame to young black men. He thinks we should acknowledge what we as a country have done to the families of black Americans; change the circumstances so these insults no longer negatively impact self-worth; add our knowledge of black lives to calculations of right and wrong, death or life.
Issac did not really defend Moochie while he was growing up, and in fact, did not frequently visit him in prison. Early on he’d dreamed that Moochie was innocent and was heartbroken to learn that, no, he was guilty. Once he, too, became a man, Issac believes that Moochie was guilty of youth, stupidity, and wishful thinking rather than a pathological need to murder someone. The situation in which Moochie found himself offered an opportunity to use the knife he carried. No matter how Issac explains it, it is difficult to excuse it.
But Issac is not asking us to excuse it. He is asking us to acknowledge the damage we have done to generations of black Americans and then ask ourselves what we expected the result would be. And this is where I am with him, shoulder to shoulder. White Americans are still displaying dominant aggression to black Americans, even now, after all we know about the real indistinguishability of genes among human beings, and how differences among us are attitudinal and cultural only.
The obvious answer, if we want different outcomes in incarceration and achievement and attitudes, is to change the culture. Our culture. It is so obvious as to appear elementary. And if you think that is hard, try continuing down this road of helplessness and hopelessness a little longer and throw other methods at the problem. Then tell me we don’t need to change the culture. Issac is completely right about the ridiculous statues of dead Confederate generals still around. What on earth is the message that is intended to send? Can we please do the barest minimum to treat black Americans like they are honored citizens of our country?
In the last pages of this memoir, when Issac is a Neiman Fellow at Harvard, two big things happen to him personally. One is that he discovers he has a rare chronic life-threatening medical condition (he is only in his fifties), and the other is that Moochie finally is granted parole. It is in these circumstances that Issac raises the question surrounding the award withdrawn from convicted murderer Michelle Jones for a scholarship to attend Harvard University. He uses her case to illustrate what he’d been talking about throughout his memoir: one can’t simple equate Michelle Jones’ circumstance with any other. One simply has to consider her case in the context of her life.
This book will challenge you. It is brilliantly argued. Read it.
Bailey writes exceptionally well, and he forms an argument so that you can acknowledge points you would surely have argued against. Bailey raises the hard issues. Everything we have talked about to now about mass incarceration and the over-representation of black men in American jails is brought under discussion here. But Bailey is tough. We’re not talking about the wrongly-accused or set-up arrests.
Bailey’s brothers, several of them, were the scourges of his small South Carolina town and spent time—a long time—in prison. One brother, Moochie, was the eldest and was responsible for taking care of the family. The father was a serial abuser and alcoholic, traumatizing the children. When Moochie, defender of the family, was taken away in handcuffs when Issac was nine, Issac’s stress reaction developed into a severe stutter that has lasted his entire life.
Moochie killed a man. He came home one night calling to his brothers to bring him fresh clothes which he changed into. He didn’t get far before he was picked up. Naturally for the place and the time, he was questioned before he was given counsel. Eventually, he admitted his guilt. The whole case was shrouded in secrecy from both the family and the town, the wildest rumors about how the event went down still circulating nearly forty years later.
Moochie’s brother Issac Bailey makes the case that his youngest brothers and Moochie’s own son, a toddler, suffered even more psychological impact. His three youngest brothers and Moochie’s son have all been in conflict with the law since high school, which none of them actually finished.
There is some research showing these very early insults to one’s psyche make long-lasting effects throughout one’s life and cause early deaths among sufferers, should they live so long. Issac Bailey wants us to consider these factors when assigning blame to young black men. He thinks we should acknowledge what we as a country have done to the families of black Americans; change the circumstances so these insults no longer negatively impact self-worth; add our knowledge of black lives to calculations of right and wrong, death or life.
Issac did not really defend Moochie while he was growing up, and in fact, did not frequently visit him in prison. Early on he’d dreamed that Moochie was innocent and was heartbroken to learn that, no, he was guilty. Once he, too, became a man, Issac believes that Moochie was guilty of youth, stupidity, and wishful thinking rather than a pathological need to murder someone. The situation in which Moochie found himself offered an opportunity to use the knife he carried. No matter how Issac explains it, it is difficult to excuse it.
But Issac is not asking us to excuse it. He is asking us to acknowledge the damage we have done to generations of black Americans and then ask ourselves what we expected the result would be. And this is where I am with him, shoulder to shoulder. White Americans are still displaying dominant aggression to black Americans, even now, after all we know about the real indistinguishability of genes among human beings, and how differences among us are attitudinal and cultural only.
The obvious answer, if we want different outcomes in incarceration and achievement and attitudes, is to change the culture. Our culture. It is so obvious as to appear elementary. And if you think that is hard, try continuing down this road of helplessness and hopelessness a little longer and throw other methods at the problem. Then tell me we don’t need to change the culture. Issac is completely right about the ridiculous statues of dead Confederate generals still around. What on earth is the message that is intended to send? Can we please do the barest minimum to treat black Americans like they are honored citizens of our country?
In the last pages of this memoir, when Issac is a Neiman Fellow at Harvard, two big things happen to him personally. One is that he discovers he has a rare chronic life-threatening medical condition (he is only in his fifties), and the other is that Moochie finally is granted parole. It is in these circumstances that Issac raises the question surrounding the award withdrawn from convicted murderer Michelle Jones for a scholarship to attend Harvard University. He uses her case to illustrate what he’d been talking about throughout his memoir: one can’t simple equate Michelle Jones’ circumstance with any other. One simply has to consider her case in the context of her life.
This book will challenge you. It is brilliantly argued. Read it.
July 22, 2018
“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view—until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” ~ Atticus Finch, To Kill a Mockingbird
While reading My Brother Moochie, Atticus Finch’s words defining empathy to daughter Scout kept ringing in my head. As a 78 year old white male senior citizen who has lived and experienced a long life, Issac Bailey gave me a whole new perspective with so much to think about. The book in itself is an invitation to think, to think about others and their challenges as they face life ~ perhaps “to climb into his darker skin and walk around in it.”
My knowledge of Issac Bailey goes back 25 years when one “Ike” Bailey caught my eye as a parent subscriber to The Davidsonian when Issac was a student columnist on his college newspaper. I remember thinking that this kid can really write and he gives me so much to think about. Thus, I looked forward to his weekly column, and I have been “an Issac fan” ever since ~ My Brother Mooschie tells me why.
Issac has fought every battle imaginable in his young life. No, this is not a tearful self-congratulating accounting of survival, but rather a rather an extremely well-crafted narrative of pure courage cloaked with sincere modesty. Whether it is dealing with a severe speech impediment, a brother convicted of murder, or with abject poverty, Issac invites the reader experience it all. The end result is to truly feel the injustices that others live with every day. I put the book down with a new perspective, and with a new way of thinking about race, poverty, and racism. This book was an amazing learning experience for me; thus I found that I put it down with a smile.
While reading My Brother Moochie, Atticus Finch’s words defining empathy to daughter Scout kept ringing in my head. As a 78 year old white male senior citizen who has lived and experienced a long life, Issac Bailey gave me a whole new perspective with so much to think about. The book in itself is an invitation to think, to think about others and their challenges as they face life ~ perhaps “to climb into his darker skin and walk around in it.”
My knowledge of Issac Bailey goes back 25 years when one “Ike” Bailey caught my eye as a parent subscriber to The Davidsonian when Issac was a student columnist on his college newspaper. I remember thinking that this kid can really write and he gives me so much to think about. Thus, I looked forward to his weekly column, and I have been “an Issac fan” ever since ~ My Brother Mooschie tells me why.
Issac has fought every battle imaginable in his young life. No, this is not a tearful self-congratulating accounting of survival, but rather a rather an extremely well-crafted narrative of pure courage cloaked with sincere modesty. Whether it is dealing with a severe speech impediment, a brother convicted of murder, or with abject poverty, Issac invites the reader experience it all. The end result is to truly feel the injustices that others live with every day. I put the book down with a new perspective, and with a new way of thinking about race, poverty, and racism. This book was an amazing learning experience for me; thus I found that I put it down with a smile.
July 9, 2018
Isaac Bailey has written a brave book. He is exploring both his family's successes and heartbreaks as well as our broken system of justice. Understanding his older brother Moochie's life, which had so much promise, has taken up a lot of energy. Only nine when the murder occurred, his stuttering problem began and became a major obstacle in Bailey's personal and professional life. Bailey shows how the families who try to support their relatives who are incarcerated only find roadblocks. There is a lot of sadness in this book but Bailey has shown us how a family member in prison can hurt a family for generations. Bailey is a successful journalist and his personal journey through the American prison system should have great impact.
Read
November 6, 2018This was kind of all over the place, but so is life in America. Race, crime, human complexity, the prison system, stuttering, self-loathing, affirmative action, Trump, drugs... I'm exhausted. But not as exhausted as a black man in the south.
October 24, 2018
My Brother Moochie is far more than the retelling of a black man murdering a white man that occurred in American south shortly after he civil rights movement. My Brother Moochie is far more than the telling of that murder from the perspective of the family of the guilty party, rather than the innocent. My Brother Moochie is powerful demonstration of one black man's journey not only within white America. Ike Bailey beautiful details the struggles he faces and comes to grips with including his hero big brother being a murderer, trying not to be "one of those black people", how his white fellow churchgoers claim not to racist but can vote in a man such as Donald Trump, and how he had to hold his tongue while his fellow students at during his undergrad at Davidson defending the police officer's that savagely beat Rodney King.
I take privilege in this next phrase and state that Ike Bailey takes a bold stance and calls for all to stop allowing "small" acts of overt racism, be viewed as small. Specifically, when a black community proclaims an injustice, the white community can no longer stand beside or tell them "this is not how you do things...this is too emotional..." If you are not overtly fighting an injustice, you are overtly allowing it.
I urge all to read this book.
I take privilege in this next phrase and state that Ike Bailey takes a bold stance and calls for all to stop allowing "small" acts of overt racism, be viewed as small. Specifically, when a black community proclaims an injustice, the white community can no longer stand beside or tell them "this is not how you do things...this is too emotional..." If you are not overtly fighting an injustice, you are overtly allowing it.
I urge all to read this book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 15, 2018
This book is incredibly well written and provides a truly unique insight into an area of the criminal justice system that is often overlooked. What is it like to be the family member of someone in prison? What happens in families that some children go to college and others go to prison? How does a young man deal with his oldest brother - his protector and idol - being arrested and jailed for murder. This books addresses all of those things and challenges the reader to think deeply about the effects of crime, poverty, racism, and lack of education/opportunity in the South (and throughout the country).
May 25, 2021
Isaac J. Bailey has presented a powerful work that is a juggling act and also an emotion-laden appeal to reason. With well researched points and a wealth of informative studies that are cited and examined, he also readily presents his story as a brother, a student, and comes to term with both his own role in oppressive systems and his role as someone oppressed by not only race and socioeconomics, but also a stuttering issue. Bailey's work is compelling as he navigates his family's role in both the academic world and in the criminal world, as half his family seems bound to great futures while the other half earn criminal records and seem destined to struggle.
Racial issues are a part of this book, certainly, but Bailey also readily joins statistics and stories of poverty, disability and ability, and social expectations by region and familial history as elements that must be considered. In telling the story of Moochie, he presents first the big brother who would stand up for their mother when their father abused her. This is where the story seems to start in earnest and we know Moochie is going to commit a crime by the title of the book, but Bailey wants us to know why the loss of this protective figure was such a big deal. Moochie had been a hero in some ways, not just a villain who would commit a crime. Still, Bailey will not simply let us readers think that the sin of the father carried down to the son - he examines his own father as well. Throughout the work, he unearths the history of the abusive father as well - an older man who married his mother when she was a young teenager in a sort of pre-arranged marriage, but he details how he lived through a time of lynchings, hate groups, and when his color was sufficient to end his life. Bailey does not allow the experience of either man to excuse their actions, but rather he compellingly asks questions about the crimes and lives they witnessed in their own times and how those socioeconomic, structural, and racial encounters might have played a role in their downfall.
Perhaps most compellingly, Bailey does not defend the actions of his family, but rather centers the stories that make up his life in a compelling series of considerations. He does not forgive his father's violence any more than he ignores the crimes of his siblings, but rather he studies the news, the history, the statistics, and his experiences to show how one family could be so readily divided between those things that made the Bailey family so respected in some ways, but criminal in others.
A minor spoiler element here, so stop reading if you want to read the book and discover Moochie's fate and that of others. In exploring Bailey's encounters with the surviving family of the victim Moochie murdered, there is such emotion and engagement that Bailey brings forth so many considerations of how areas and socioeconomics play out in families. The surviving sister discussing how many of her family were lost to crime or poor decisions humanizes all involved, which is something that Bailey had already done, but this encounter between the family of the victim and a family member of the murderer is so poignant even if Bailey owns that it is not the Hollywood ending for which he hoped. This is not just a book about racial considerations, though that is surely part of its strong dialogue. This is not just a book about the ongoing damage of socioeconomics and poverty, though that echoes throughout it as well. Nor is this a book solely about the South, nor is it solely about disability and health, nor is it about access and education. Instead, this book seems to encapsulate so much of the human experience for these characters that one is compelled to read on and to engage in the powerful human discussion this book engenders.
The book conjures up, sometimes by direct allusion, works of fiction such as Invisible Man as well as detailing how Moochie engages in the study of Afrocentricity in prison and the impact it has on his experiences. This creates a depth of engagement in the reading that quickly had me curious in relation to the books, readings, and studies to which these individuals and others they encountered engaged. Again, a telling indicator of the book that these biographical elements lead me to explore their readings myself.
Bailey's book explores so much so richly that, in the end, it comments on everything from brotherhood to education, from access to whiteness, from culture to poverty, from service to the cost it may have on those trying to do it. Of all the biographies I have read, My Brother Moochie: Regaining Dignity in the Face of Crime, Poverty, and Racism in the American South may be one of those most human in that I want to read follow ups and share it with others. A phenomenally human work backed with equal parts research, history, and heart.
Racial issues are a part of this book, certainly, but Bailey also readily joins statistics and stories of poverty, disability and ability, and social expectations by region and familial history as elements that must be considered. In telling the story of Moochie, he presents first the big brother who would stand up for their mother when their father abused her. This is where the story seems to start in earnest and we know Moochie is going to commit a crime by the title of the book, but Bailey wants us to know why the loss of this protective figure was such a big deal. Moochie had been a hero in some ways, not just a villain who would commit a crime. Still, Bailey will not simply let us readers think that the sin of the father carried down to the son - he examines his own father as well. Throughout the work, he unearths the history of the abusive father as well - an older man who married his mother when she was a young teenager in a sort of pre-arranged marriage, but he details how he lived through a time of lynchings, hate groups, and when his color was sufficient to end his life. Bailey does not allow the experience of either man to excuse their actions, but rather he compellingly asks questions about the crimes and lives they witnessed in their own times and how those socioeconomic, structural, and racial encounters might have played a role in their downfall.
Perhaps most compellingly, Bailey does not defend the actions of his family, but rather centers the stories that make up his life in a compelling series of considerations. He does not forgive his father's violence any more than he ignores the crimes of his siblings, but rather he studies the news, the history, the statistics, and his experiences to show how one family could be so readily divided between those things that made the Bailey family so respected in some ways, but criminal in others.
A minor spoiler element here, so stop reading if you want to read the book and discover Moochie's fate and that of others. In exploring Bailey's encounters with the surviving family of the victim Moochie murdered, there is such emotion and engagement that Bailey brings forth so many considerations of how areas and socioeconomics play out in families. The surviving sister discussing how many of her family were lost to crime or poor decisions humanizes all involved, which is something that Bailey had already done, but this encounter between the family of the victim and a family member of the murderer is so poignant even if Bailey owns that it is not the Hollywood ending for which he hoped. This is not just a book about racial considerations, though that is surely part of its strong dialogue. This is not just a book about the ongoing damage of socioeconomics and poverty, though that echoes throughout it as well. Nor is this a book solely about the South, nor is it solely about disability and health, nor is it about access and education. Instead, this book seems to encapsulate so much of the human experience for these characters that one is compelled to read on and to engage in the powerful human discussion this book engenders.
The book conjures up, sometimes by direct allusion, works of fiction such as Invisible Man as well as detailing how Moochie engages in the study of Afrocentricity in prison and the impact it has on his experiences. This creates a depth of engagement in the reading that quickly had me curious in relation to the books, readings, and studies to which these individuals and others they encountered engaged. Again, a telling indicator of the book that these biographical elements lead me to explore their readings myself.
Bailey's book explores so much so richly that, in the end, it comments on everything from brotherhood to education, from access to whiteness, from culture to poverty, from service to the cost it may have on those trying to do it. Of all the biographies I have read, My Brother Moochie: Regaining Dignity in the Face of Crime, Poverty, and Racism in the American South may be one of those most human in that I want to read follow ups and share it with others. A phenomenally human work backed with equal parts research, history, and heart.
August 25, 2018
It is a powerful and never told story made more powerful because of Mr. Bailey's remarkable honesty. If a book can have a soul, this one has touched mine.
March 3, 2019
Heartbreaking and introspective look at racism, violence, injustice, love and hate from a place within a single family, but also as part of the greater society of the south/nation.
February 12, 2025
"Moochie never planned to kill anyone. His clandestine approach at night armed with a weapon suggests otherwise, but only to those who have never sat down and really listened to men who have committed ugly acts and asked them why they did what they did. The sociopath plans and is purposeful. His intent is to harm, to kill, to inflict pain or humiliate, or all the above. With men like Moochie, their irrational thinking convinces them that they can get what they want—he wanted Mr. Bunch to drop robbery charges over a stolen $240—without anyone getting hurt, that the weapon in their hand is a negotiating tool, or something they might need for self-defense if things went wrong. They don’t notice what should be obvious, that they are unnecessarily creating the dangerous situation in which a weapon might be used in an unanticipated heated moment. For the larger society, that distinction is often lost, and most violent criminals are forever judged on the outcome instead of the factors that led to their dastardly deeds. It’s a rational response, given that the murdered person is just as dead no matter the cause...
The distinction, though—the difference between a sociopathic killer and a desperate or disturbed or broken man who kills—must begin mattering if our goal really is to reduce violent crime and provide justice for victims and their families while leaving open the possibility for the redemption of the wayward. Punishing crime is a necessary evil. But building stronger communities and families requires no longer mistaking punishment for justice."
The distinction, though—the difference between a sociopathic killer and a desperate or disturbed or broken man who kills—must begin mattering if our goal really is to reduce violent crime and provide justice for victims and their families while leaving open the possibility for the redemption of the wayward. Punishing crime is a necessary evil. But building stronger communities and families requires no longer mistaking punishment for justice."
July 5, 2020
Where to begin? Ike Bailey's memoir and reflections feel like someone reaching inside to grip your heart and guts, and turning you inside out. It's an account of family -- the beautiful and loving, the ugly and violent, the trauma and the coping. He explores how the worst in those we love destroy and twist innocent lives. He probes the boundaries of love -- that which can be understood and forgiven, and that which never can. Most sharply, Ike outlines the most heinous crimes and violence through the prism of race. A gifted writer, he will leave you turning thoughts and ideas over and over again, re-examining your long-held views, reading news headlines in a different way, and never feeling quite the same about race, America, and the judgements we so hastily pass on one another. He also leaves me wanting to know more about the women in his life, especially his mother and his wife. Thank you, Ike Bailey, for making the human experience richer for us all.
June 7, 2020
A timely, compelling, at times uncomfortable depiction of the expansive impact of our criminal justice system on Black families.
July 10, 2018
www.thenextgoodbook.com
My Bother Moochie by Issac J. Bailey
286 pages
What’s it about?
Journalist Isaac J. Bailey was only 9 years-old when he watched his older brother, and hero, being led off in handcuffs and charged with murder. Moochie would not return to the family for 32 years. Issac Bailey uses his skills as a journalist to look back and reflect on how this event shaped his life.
What did it make me think about?
This is a memoir that will make you think. You may or may not agree with all that is written but this memoir sure gives you a particular perspective. We all know the impact of crime on the victims, but this book demonstrates how crime and incarceration in the black community also has a powerful impact on the criminal as well as all those that love that person. "I've known that though some of my brothers have done monstrous things, they are not monsters, that they can be just as loving and compassionate and wise as the rest of us, that they are just as complex and fully deserving of being treated like full human beings- that their lives matter- despite what they've done."
Should I read it?
Although this book highlights the immense problem of race in America, it provides no easy answers. Maybe a start is reading books such as this. Books that give us a different perspective. Not only reading them but being open to what the author is saying. This author goes back and forth between raging at the white man and all that the white race has done to create these problems- to being angry at those young black men that make poor choices. Race in America is a complicated problem but if we don't start hearing each other it is not going to go away. Maybe this book is a start.
Quote-
"The white man set us on an awful course, stealing us from Africa and enslaving and raping and beating us, then lynching us, then putting us on the back of the bus and forcing us to raise their children, who treated our men and women like kids, then banning us from the best neighborhoods and schools, then blaming us for the resulting maladies.
But many black families found a way to navigate through it all without succumbing to prison and fulfilling a stereotype. I know Mama wanted us in that number."
If you like this try-
Fire Shut up In My Bones by Charles M. Blow
Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance
Educated by Tara Westover
All Over But the Shouting by Rick Bragg
My Bother Moochie by Issac J. Bailey
286 pages
What’s it about?
Journalist Isaac J. Bailey was only 9 years-old when he watched his older brother, and hero, being led off in handcuffs and charged with murder. Moochie would not return to the family for 32 years. Issac Bailey uses his skills as a journalist to look back and reflect on how this event shaped his life.
What did it make me think about?
This is a memoir that will make you think. You may or may not agree with all that is written but this memoir sure gives you a particular perspective. We all know the impact of crime on the victims, but this book demonstrates how crime and incarceration in the black community also has a powerful impact on the criminal as well as all those that love that person. "I've known that though some of my brothers have done monstrous things, they are not monsters, that they can be just as loving and compassionate and wise as the rest of us, that they are just as complex and fully deserving of being treated like full human beings- that their lives matter- despite what they've done."
Should I read it?
Although this book highlights the immense problem of race in America, it provides no easy answers. Maybe a start is reading books such as this. Books that give us a different perspective. Not only reading them but being open to what the author is saying. This author goes back and forth between raging at the white man and all that the white race has done to create these problems- to being angry at those young black men that make poor choices. Race in America is a complicated problem but if we don't start hearing each other it is not going to go away. Maybe this book is a start.
Quote-
"The white man set us on an awful course, stealing us from Africa and enslaving and raping and beating us, then lynching us, then putting us on the back of the bus and forcing us to raise their children, who treated our men and women like kids, then banning us from the best neighborhoods and schools, then blaming us for the resulting maladies.
But many black families found a way to navigate through it all without succumbing to prison and fulfilling a stereotype. I know Mama wanted us in that number."
If you like this try-
Fire Shut up In My Bones by Charles M. Blow
Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance
Educated by Tara Westover
All Over But the Shouting by Rick Bragg
Read
September 1, 2018An account of the (undeserved) shame of having a having a family member guilty of murder and the collateral effects to parents and siblings. Issac tells his story and gives multiple perspectives, not shying away from hard truths. This is a brave book! It will make you think.
December 2, 2021
Book Review by Stacey Lorenson
My Brother Moochie, by Issac J. Bailey
Rating: 3.8
My Brother Moochie, written by Issac J. Bailey, an award-winning journalist and Professor at Davidson College, is an artfully crafted memoir which chronicles his eldest brother’s life, the lasting effects of his incarceration and the impact to Bailey’s family over their lifetime. Bailey also makes a strong commentary on the inconsistencies of the American justice system and how race and socioeconomic status influence the treatment of minorities within the criminal justice system.
In 1982, Bailey’s brother, Moochie, confessed to killing a white man named James Bunch, while under the influence of drugs. Moochie was sentenced to life in prison. This traumatic event transformed the trajectory of Bailey’s life. He details how his brother’s crime affected his childhood and the debilitating repercussions he suffered throughout his adult life.
I did not want to put this book down until I knew the fate of his imprisoned brother, Moochie. I was inspired by Bailey’s academic, professional and personal triumphs in the face of tremendous odds. Bailey is a gifted writer. My Brother Moochie was diligently researched, with numerous studies and articles referenced to inform readers about crime, poverty, and racism in the American south. This was a gut-wrenching story of what Bailey describes as, ‘debilitating shame and guilt’. Bailey reflects with candor and vulnerability as he describes the emotional rollercoaster of loving a ‘murderer without excusing the murder’, while learning to adapt to the social stigma of having an incarcerated loved one.
Baily insists that, Americans ‘commit to the hard-internal work necessary for long-term change’, while examining the social and political motivations that would enable our society to acknowledge and support families who have incarcerated family members, along with the needs of victims of crime. To ignore the fore mentioned, contributes to a cycle of emotional and social neglect that impacts every socioeconomic level. My Brother Moochie is a poignant and necessary read.
My Brother Moochie, by Issac J. Bailey
Rating: 3.8
My Brother Moochie, written by Issac J. Bailey, an award-winning journalist and Professor at Davidson College, is an artfully crafted memoir which chronicles his eldest brother’s life, the lasting effects of his incarceration and the impact to Bailey’s family over their lifetime. Bailey also makes a strong commentary on the inconsistencies of the American justice system and how race and socioeconomic status influence the treatment of minorities within the criminal justice system.
In 1982, Bailey’s brother, Moochie, confessed to killing a white man named James Bunch, while under the influence of drugs. Moochie was sentenced to life in prison. This traumatic event transformed the trajectory of Bailey’s life. He details how his brother’s crime affected his childhood and the debilitating repercussions he suffered throughout his adult life.
I did not want to put this book down until I knew the fate of his imprisoned brother, Moochie. I was inspired by Bailey’s academic, professional and personal triumphs in the face of tremendous odds. Bailey is a gifted writer. My Brother Moochie was diligently researched, with numerous studies and articles referenced to inform readers about crime, poverty, and racism in the American south. This was a gut-wrenching story of what Bailey describes as, ‘debilitating shame and guilt’. Bailey reflects with candor and vulnerability as he describes the emotional rollercoaster of loving a ‘murderer without excusing the murder’, while learning to adapt to the social stigma of having an incarcerated loved one.
Baily insists that, Americans ‘commit to the hard-internal work necessary for long-term change’, while examining the social and political motivations that would enable our society to acknowledge and support families who have incarcerated family members, along with the needs of victims of crime. To ignore the fore mentioned, contributes to a cycle of emotional and social neglect that impacts every socioeconomic level. My Brother Moochie is a poignant and necessary read.
December 1, 2019
What makes this book so unique is that it is a first person account of an African-American family affected by criminal justice system in America. Issac Bailey grew up in a large family (11 children) in a small town in the rural south. At 9 years old he saw his oldest brother, Moochie, taken away in handcuffs for violent murder of a white man. There is no question that Moochie, under the influence of drugs and alcohol, committed the murder. Bailey helps the reader to understand the constrained circumstances that lead to Moochie's actions - starting with the forced marriage of Bailey's mother at the age of 13 to a much older man; the grinding poverty of living with many people in a small trailer; watching his father repeatedly physically abuse his mother with Moochie becoming his mother's protector. Bailey never excuses his brother's crime. He wants the reader to understand how the history of racism and family dysfunction affect people. Is there any explanation for why, after Moochie, the next 7 children became law abiding citizens making significant contributions to their communities and raising their own families? And then the youngest three boys were all significantly involved in the criminal justice system and served jail or prison time?
Bailey has this to say (p. 264)
"They [members of a white evangelical church Bailey once attended] don't understand . . .the effects of toxic stress on a poverty-stricken young brain and what that means for behavior in school and student's prospects afterwards." He goes on to discuss the daily struggle with institutionalize racism and the odds stacked against Black men, especially, in America. His plea is that we each be more willing to name racism and work to dismantle the myriad ways in which Blacks are disadvantaged in our society.
This book isn't filled with statistics - it's a very personal story that anyone concerned with racism, crime, poverty and the prospects for Black youth in America should read.
Bailey has this to say (p. 264)
"They [members of a white evangelical church Bailey once attended] don't understand . . .the effects of toxic stress on a poverty-stricken young brain and what that means for behavior in school and student's prospects afterwards." He goes on to discuss the daily struggle with institutionalize racism and the odds stacked against Black men, especially, in America. His plea is that we each be more willing to name racism and work to dismantle the myriad ways in which Blacks are disadvantaged in our society.
This book isn't filled with statistics - it's a very personal story that anyone concerned with racism, crime, poverty and the prospects for Black youth in America should read.
July 20, 2021
Everyone has their own blind spots. When reading a memoir, one must take blind spots as a given.
Mr Bailey writes movingly about his idolized oldest brother, Moochie, who killed a man and went to prison. The murder did not just happen; Moochie had started on a downward path towards a life of crime as a boy. But interestingly, in the large Bailey family, some were involved in criminal activity while others eschewed that life and went on to become educated and productive. What made the difference? The author has no answer, nor do I.
Most of the blind spots Mr Bailey unintentionally reveals have to do with group identity. [Insert group here] always does such-and-such; [insert different group here] never does this-and-that. When we start looking at individual human beings, with all our faults, our stellar qualities, our quirks, and our foibles, and defining people as only part of a group, we diminish the personhood of the individual and make rapprochement extremely difficult.
Another area the author seems to struggle with is the family of his brother's victim and the pain they have gone through in the decades since the murder. Mr Bailey gives lip service to their suffering, but turns it around and asks for mercy for his brother because Moochie's been incarcerated for so long. Hasn't he suffered enough? The victim's family is still in pain. Mr Bailey tries to meet with the family, and does talk to his sister one time, but then they refuse any further meetings. This seems to upset Mr Bailey's quest for his own absolution/understanding, if not for his brother's.
As I began, this is a memoir, and as such presents only the writer's viewpoints. It's an interesting look at crime and punishment from the viewpoint of someone who loves the perpetrator.
Mr Bailey writes movingly about his idolized oldest brother, Moochie, who killed a man and went to prison. The murder did not just happen; Moochie had started on a downward path towards a life of crime as a boy. But interestingly, in the large Bailey family, some were involved in criminal activity while others eschewed that life and went on to become educated and productive. What made the difference? The author has no answer, nor do I.
Most of the blind spots Mr Bailey unintentionally reveals have to do with group identity. [Insert group here] always does such-and-such; [insert different group here] never does this-and-that. When we start looking at individual human beings, with all our faults, our stellar qualities, our quirks, and our foibles, and defining people as only part of a group, we diminish the personhood of the individual and make rapprochement extremely difficult.
Another area the author seems to struggle with is the family of his brother's victim and the pain they have gone through in the decades since the murder. Mr Bailey gives lip service to their suffering, but turns it around and asks for mercy for his brother because Moochie's been incarcerated for so long. Hasn't he suffered enough? The victim's family is still in pain. Mr Bailey tries to meet with the family, and does talk to his sister one time, but then they refuse any further meetings. This seems to upset Mr Bailey's quest for his own absolution/understanding, if not for his brother's.
As I began, this is a memoir, and as such presents only the writer's viewpoints. It's an interesting look at crime and punishment from the viewpoint of someone who loves the perpetrator.
December 19, 2018
My Brother Moochie: Regaining Dignity in the Face of Crime, Poverty, and Racism in the American South by Isaac J. Bailey (Other Press 2018) (364.973). Author Isaac J. Bailey grew up poor and Black in the 1980's and 1990's in tiny St. Stephen, South Carolina in a two-parent household filled with ten brothers and sisters. His oldest brother, Moochie, was a hero to his younger siblings. Sadly, Moochie took up small-time criminal behavior. When he stabbed a local store-owner to death, he was sentenced to life in prison. Though the author has by all accounts created a successful career for himself as a commercial writer in small town South Carolina, this book is the author's riff on how different life would have been (1) if he and his family had been White, and (2) if he had not developed a speech impediment (a stutter) in his youth.
Having grown up White, male, and Southern, I recognize the veracity of the author's own perceptions. If a young Black male perceives the existence of Southern racial prejudice, I am inclined to be apologetic and accomodating rather than defensive – particularly in the day and age of our current White House occupant.
As to the difficulty of living with a stammer, I have no insight. I do know that children can be devastatingly cruel to those who fall outside the norm in any way. I cannot think of a way to stand out in a crowd of youth more than to have no control over one's own manner and method of speech.
This is an interesting take from a perspective that differs greatly from my own. My rating: 7/10, finished 12/18/18.
Having grown up White, male, and Southern, I recognize the veracity of the author's own perceptions. If a young Black male perceives the existence of Southern racial prejudice, I am inclined to be apologetic and accomodating rather than defensive – particularly in the day and age of our current White House occupant.
As to the difficulty of living with a stammer, I have no insight. I do know that children can be devastatingly cruel to those who fall outside the norm in any way. I cannot think of a way to stand out in a crowd of youth more than to have no control over one's own manner and method of speech.
This is an interesting take from a perspective that differs greatly from my own. My rating: 7/10, finished 12/18/18.
October 22, 2019
A mandatory read for incoming freshman at a local college is what sparked my curiosity as to what My Brother Moochie is about. It is a harrowing read that delves into the life and family of journalist, Issac Bailey. Growing up in St. Stephen, SC, surrounded by poverty, crime, and bigotry, Issac gives readers insight on his perception of his life in his hometown and in the world today. The many stories of Issac's childhood/adulthood and what life was like for his family as a whole explains his passion for being so vocal and outspoken in regard to sensitive subjects. Although it is challenging for him to discuss what life was like for him growing up, he pushes through the hurt and tells his story to let others know the turmoil him and his family endured. It is a combination of the Baileys' lifestyle and sensitive subjects that shapes Issac's love for his family. In spite of all the negative misfortunes the Bailey family experiences, Issac takes it upon himself to see the good in all the unfavorable situations and narrow-minded individuals he encountered along his traumatizing journey...and I say kudos to Issac because that is growth on a level that I believe evolves over time.
September 2, 2024
Uncomfortable but necessary dialogue
I need to provide a review of this book superbly written by an author from my hometown of Saint Stephen, South Carolina. He did a phenomenal job describing our hometown, and because I know this family, the heartbreak rendered me speechless. This author's wordsmith causes you to not only feel but it also provokes thoughts that are not always most comfortable but significantly real. The Bailey family I knew were trendsetter, brilliant, and often leaders in our schools. They did that despite what took place in 1982. This story teaches us that the family of the incarcerated also suffers significantly, and society never considers it as the focus is solely on the victims family. The author did not hide the struggle of his duality and how it shapes his perspective, his future, and his outlook. This conversation is necessary if there are any intentions towards true prison reform. Unfortunately, we are in a society that profits off the incarcerated and would rather keep those bodies captured instead of seeking ways to keep families intact. This was a lot to unpack, and this story will stay with me for a long time.
I need to provide a review of this book superbly written by an author from my hometown of Saint Stephen, South Carolina. He did a phenomenal job describing our hometown, and because I know this family, the heartbreak rendered me speechless. This author's wordsmith causes you to not only feel but it also provokes thoughts that are not always most comfortable but significantly real. The Bailey family I knew were trendsetter, brilliant, and often leaders in our schools. They did that despite what took place in 1982. This story teaches us that the family of the incarcerated also suffers significantly, and society never considers it as the focus is solely on the victims family. The author did not hide the struggle of his duality and how it shapes his perspective, his future, and his outlook. This conversation is necessary if there are any intentions towards true prison reform. Unfortunately, we are in a society that profits off the incarcerated and would rather keep those bodies captured instead of seeking ways to keep families intact. This was a lot to unpack, and this story will stay with me for a long time.
October 25, 2018
I want more books written on tough topics with clear emotional honesty like this one. This makes this book a difficult read, I kept reading it with my hand over my mouth and sometimes I had to take breaks and put it down to absorb fully what I was trying to comprehend. Good, that’s what books like this are supposed to do. There are no easy answers, sometimes more questions than answers. Good, that’s what books like this are supposed to do. This is how you start a bonfire is by striking a match. Issac, thank you for your honesty laid bare on these pages, all people need to bear witness to pain like yours. The sub story of Issac’s stuttering condition was equally as powerful as it tied into the loss of his brother’s incarceration when Isaac was just a small boy. I’m glad you have Tracy and the rest of your support system in your life.
August 26, 2024
The best chapter is the last one - it helped explain why siblings growing up in the same family can have such different future outcomes. The book jumped around some - discussing his problems dealing with a life-long struggle with stuttering - how his dysfunctional family history affected his life and his brothers' outcomes. I felt especially sorry for the youngest family members. I came away feeling that his mother was a compassionate woman but wonder if all her focus on helping community people took some time away from the younger ones in the family, leaving them to fend for themselves. I was hoping for more of an explanation for the vast difference in outcomes of the children's lives, but the only take away was how differently people react to dysfunction and environmental influences. More inherent to an individual than outside environment reactions? Difficult to say!!!
August 8, 2020
An engrossing story of a family devastated yet also triumphant. Bailey provides harsh criticisms of the racist systems which led to his brother's imprisonment but he also deals with the inconvenient fact that his brother was not innocent. I found Bailey complex in that he squarely identifies and deconstructs the racist systems in our society but also, amazingly, declares that the mostly white members of the church he grew up in, including those who voted for Trump, are not racist. Bailey insists he could still call up any one of them in the middle of the night and they would help him. Of course he is also realistic, understanding they are neither racist nor allies because they are too concerned with their own comfort.
December 29, 2018
There is much of this book that stayed with me. One of the most illuminating threads of this memoir was about the authors stutter. I do not think I have read any other account of stuttering and how dealing with the challenges affected the individual. I was really affected by how unstoppable the author was in finding his voice and moving forward in his life despite it. I came to feel through reading the book that the author’s underlying strength was deeply and vitally tied to his speech difference and personal persistence despite it.
April 19, 2020
This is an extremely well written and thought provoking book. It will make you question what you think you know about racism.
I was one of Tracy Bailey’s colleagues when she taught at Socastee High School in Myrtle Beach, SC. I attended Tracy and Isaac’s wedding, but had no idea of the hardships they had encountered. I thought they were a beautiful and strong young couple. Now I know just how strong they really are. Isaac has written a raw and riveting memoir and an unflinching commentary on racism in America.
I was one of Tracy Bailey’s colleagues when she taught at Socastee High School in Myrtle Beach, SC. I attended Tracy and Isaac’s wedding, but had no idea of the hardships they had encountered. I thought they were a beautiful and strong young couple. Now I know just how strong they really are. Isaac has written a raw and riveting memoir and an unflinching commentary on racism in America.
July 12, 2018
This was a very personal look at the impact on the author and his family of a deadly crime perpetrated by his older brother.
What I liked about this book was the author's intention of exploring what happened its effects.effects were. This was not a rant. His perspective is nuanced and questioning. He does not ignore the hardship being black in small town South Carolina imposes, neither is it the only theme. The last chapter is more of a polemic, but still thoughtful. The writing is superb!
What I liked about this book was the author's intention of exploring what happened its effects.effects were. This was not a rant. His perspective is nuanced and questioning. He does not ignore the hardship being black in small town South Carolina imposes, neither is it the only theme. The last chapter is more of a polemic, but still thoughtful. The writing is superb!
July 13, 2018
"The white boys stole guns from a store in Bonneau and sometimes from a train stop near Charlrston, where they'd find assault rifles on train cars from nearby military base."
'"White boys come through with guns you never seen before,"' James said, '"They get them from the government and dump them in the hood so we could kill each other.'"
now that would make a great and interesting topic to write/read about.
good luck
'"White boys come through with guns you never seen before,"' James said, '"They get them from the government and dump them in the hood so we could kill each other.'"
now that would make a great and interesting topic to write/read about.
good luck
July 17, 2018
Bailey shares heartfelt memories of growing up in the south with an older brother accused of murdering a white man. Race and the criminal justice system in the forefront along with the abuse he experienced and witnessed from his father frame his story. Beautifully written and insightful exploration of his growing up and the crisis that forces him to face the reality of his childhood and that his brother was guilty of the murder.
August 12, 2018
I thought this book was brilliant--full of love, conflict, real emotion and honesty. Ultimately, although rooted in a tale about a family member convicted of a horrific crime, this story is about how racism changes black people. How racism produces both pride and loathing, both of self and of other black people. It takes a lot of bravery to explore these issues and the author pulls it off magnificently.
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