03/26/2018
Like athletes-turned-authors Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and the late Arthur Ashe, Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Bennett uses his professional fame to shed light on American racism in these astute personal essays. Cowritten by Zirin (Brazil’s Dance with the Devil), the book begins at the 2017 NFL preseason opener, where Bennett took a knee during the national anthem. He defends his decision to kneel in support of his friend, former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who started the practice to protest racist police violence. Bennett recounts experiencing that brutality firsthand when police officers in Las Vegas pinned him to the ground and held a gun to his head. “I know what it’s like to be treated like an animal... because of my race. I was guilty until proven innocent,” he writes. Over the course of these essays, Bennett condemns the way NFL players are prodded, evaluated, and inspected, which he compares to “slave auctions,” where they feel like “property”; expounds on the importance of Black Lives Matter; and issues an heartfelt apology for his use of the N-word in his youth, saying that at the time he didn’t understand the word’s “magnitude and its power to dehumanize black people.” He also shares personal stories of growing up in deeply prejudiced Louisiana, moving to San Diego with his family and witnessing gang violence there, and finding a welcoming community of “so many different types of people” in Houston. Equal parts memoir and manifesto, Bennett’s book proves he can tackle the ills of society as capably as he tackles quarterbacks. (Apr.)
“This book is a courageous and compassionate story of a great athlete and grand human being full of deep care for his fellow citizens! Don't miss it!”—Cornel West
“It would be easy for Michael Bennett to remain silent, to play in the NFL and make his mark through accomplishments on the field. Instead Michael has chosen to use his voice and his platform to fight injustice.”—Senator Bernie Sanders
“There is a tradition of athletes who understand that sports is a way to reach people and change the world. I am proud and humbled to be recognized as part of that tradition. I believe that Michael Bennett's name deserves mention alongside the best of us. This book doesn't only explain the roots of Michael Bennett's courage. It will inspire the people who read it to conquer their fears and fight for what's right.”—Dr. John Carlos, 1968 Olympic medalist
“I was going to say this is the most courageous books on race written by an athlete in my lifetime, but I actually think this is one of the most courageous books on race and racism in America that has ever been written by anyone. It’s that good and that important.”—Shaun King, columnist for The Intercept and writer-in-residence for Harvard Law School’s Fair Punishment Project
“There is a revolution underway inside professional sports and Michael Bennett is at ground zero. In this revelatory book, he puts everything on the line to share the reasons, strategy, pain and deep thought behind this historic uprising. And he invites us into a vision of justice and liberation that is simply irresistible. This book is pure fire.”—Naomi Klein, author of No Is Not Enough
“Michael Bennett—husband and father, citizen, NFL Pro Bowl Player and Super Bowl MVP—presents a series of perspectives on cultural, institutional, and political realities within the sports arena and beyond that provokes us to a deeper consideration of athlete political activism, activism that today makes many in white America uncomfortable. His arguments are as persuasively reasoned and analytical as they are passionate and moving, as challenging in their message as they are disarming in their humor. Though appropriately titled, the book at core really urges us all to a better understanding of the current saga of athlete protests, protests that are testament to what we already have become as a society and a warning about where we might be headed as a nation, protests that constitute a cautionary tale that should make us all, irrespective of race, at least a little ‘uncomfortable,’ perhaps even uncomfortable enough to ‘grow in our own responsiveness to the call to form that more Perfect Union.’ A must-read for anyone looking to better understand today’s political climate in American sports.”—Harry Edwards, author of The Revolt of the Black Athlete
“Michael Bennett is one of the most outspoken and progressive voices in the NFL.”—The Root ‘100 Most Influential African Americans 2017′
“With vulnerability, humility, and the courage to tell the truth, Michael Bennett reminds us at the heart of every social awakening are ordinary people who choose justice and resistance over silence and comfort. In a profession where independent thought is punished, Michael Bennett lays it all on the line with this book. Bennett’s insights into everything from Black Lives Matter, to college athletics, to intersectional feminism will not only make white people uncomfortable, but it will challenge the status quo of our entire society.”—Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, author of From #BlackLivesMatter to Black Liberation
“Michael Bennet is a warrior for justice. His spirit is in line and step with all those freedom fighters who came before him.”—Craig Hodges, author of Long Shot: The Triumphs and Struggles of An NBA Freedom Fighter
“In a social media age where professional athletes are regularly criticized by anyone with a twitter account, Michael Bennett has the courage to stand up for what he believes despite the possibility of losing fans, support or endorsements. Whether it’s speaking on police brutality, systemic racism, Black Lives Matter, or human rights for Palestinian people he doesn’t hesitate to lend his voice. This book is a live wire. It's electric.”—Etan Thomas, 10 Year NBA Veteran, author of We Matter: Athletes and Activism
“Things That Make White People Uncomfortable is a real and unblinkingly raw memoir that is going to make a lot of white people, and people of color too, very uncomfortable. And that is precisely the point. Because Michael Bennett is one of the most outspoken and dynamic athletes in America today, and his co-writer, Dave Zirin, is very clearly our nation’s most fearless sports journalist. Together they are Muhammad Ali and Howard Cosell bringing the noise about race, sports, and the wonderfully diverse life that is Michael Bennett’s journey as a Black man who refuses to be stereotyped. At a time when the protests of sport heroes like Bennett and Colin Kaepernick have once more revealed the huge racial divides that have always been present, what makes this book different, and so unique, is that Bennett remixes the past into an unavoidable and necessary dialogue for this 21st century, on his own terms. Indeed, Michael Bennett's voice echoes that of Jack Johnson, Paul Robeson, Ali. And his voice is that of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, too. Because Michael Bennett is clear, mad clear, that he is a leader and a change agent, too.”—Kevin Powell, author of The Education of Kevin Powell: A Boy’s Journey into Manhood
2018-02-06
An outspoken activist athlete practically dares readers to think of professional football and its players in the same way again after finishing this book.To say that Bennett, who co-authored this book with activist-minded Nation sports editor Zirin, has a chip on his shoulder would be an understatement. He was born to a teenage mother and raised by his father with his brother Martellus, also an outspoken pro football player. After the family split and he finished his college career at Texas A&M, he went undrafted by the NFL because he wasn't considered "coachable"—i.e., he thought too independently and spoke his mind. He calls the NCAA "a gangster operation, a shakedown, and a system that works for everyone but the so-called student-athletes." He notes how his brother has called the NFL "Niggas For Lease'—and that's the most brutally honest thing I've ever heard"—later, though, he engages in a nuanced analysis of that hateful epithet and its variations. He compares the dehumanizing flesh market of the NFL combine to "slave auctions," staunchly defends Colin Kaepernick as an athletic hero, and makes an impassioned defense for taking a knee or locking arms during the national anthem. In places, the book reads like the author is trying to be as provocative as possible, but he ultimately shows a commendable seriousness of purpose, providing a call to arms to other pro athletes to use their platforms for cultural responsibility and to fans to understand the human dimension of the NFL and the price paid for the on-field violence that serves as their entertainment. Bennett is particularly incisive on branding and on the conditional nature of fandom: "I'll be a football player for just a few more years," he writes, "but I'll be Black forever." He ends on a moving note of reconciliation, as he bridges the gulf with his birth mother and tries to get his father, stepmother, and brother to do the same.A fiery memoir/manifesto by an athlete with his heart in the right place.
