The Fire This Time: A New Generation Speaks about Race

by Jesmyn Ward

What Baldwin understood is that to be black in America is to have the demand for dignity be at absolute odds with the national anthem.

As Reagan’s key political strategist, Lee Atwater, explained in a 1981 interview:

“You start out in 1954 by saying, ‘N——-, n——-, n——-.’ By 1968 you can’t say ‘n——-’—that hurts you. Backfires. So you say stuff like ‘forced busing,’ ‘states’ rights,’ and all that stuff. You’re getting so abstract now you’re talking about cutting taxes, and all these things you’re talking about are totally economic things, and a byproduct of them is blacks get hurt worse than whites.

And these days, you’re more likely to see revolution on a car ad than anywhere meaningful.

You can’t walk up to the door all polite and knock once or twice, hoping someone’s home. Justice is a door that, when closed, must be kicked in.