JMRL Brown Baggers met Thursday, Feb. 15th to discuss “My People: Five Decades of Writing About Black Lives”  by Charlayne Hunter-Gault 2022.  Consisting of a collection of articles and essays and divided into six thematic parts, some of our readers had trouble finishing or staying engaged with this month’s selection.  The collected essays were from different time periods, and not in chronological order. (One reader shared that her spouse re-ordered and read the articles accordingly.)

Best known by our group for her appearances on PBS Newshour and as a television correspondent, Hunter-Gault’s career included interactions with a veritable who’s who of many late 20th century notable figures in black history including John Lewis, Shirley Chisolm, Nelson Mandela and Julian Bond.

There was some repetition as the essays in different sections covered some of the same material.  In particular, aspects of her experience with Hamilton Holmes, integrating the University of Georgia were covered in several selections.  However, our readers really appreciated how Hunter-Gault described the terror that she felt at the time and found her account of that experience quite compelling. 

A full section of the book was devoted to Hunter-Gault’s time in South Africa as an NPR and CNN bureau chief, reporting on Nelson Mandela and South African regional, social and political conditions.  

The group discussed different childhood experiences growing up with racism in the American North vs. the South.  We recollected the experience of watching “Roots” in the 1970s and the impact it had on Americans.  And finally many in our group felt embarrassed and naive about not knowing these acts of repression were happening in our midst.

What can we do?  Encourage current generations to stay engaged and informed.