“Some books are to be tasted, others swallowed.” Francis Bacon (d. 1626).
Review By
Darold H. Morgan
The Heart of Whiteness
By Robert Jensen
City Lights, San Francisco, 2005. Paper $12.95
Jensen’s brief book, just 98 pages in length, can be interpreted as an angry diatribe against white people, or it may well be a timely, brutally frank appeal to white people to realize the depths of the problems of racism in America today. Much of one’s reaction will relate to one’s own personal convictions about these unsolved, festering issues. There is one sure thing that emerges from reading this small, volatile volume—it will get your blood pressure into high gear!
The author, a Professor of Journalism at Austin’s University of Texas, comes across as a deeply passionate individual who holds exceptionally strong convictions about the contemporary and questionable concepts of white supremacy in many segments of American life. Much of his approach is so direct, even brutal, as he attempts to shock the average white American to the depths. Of this age-old problem that many had thought was well on its way to a brokered solution. He goes so far in this direction that one can readily conclude with another reviewer who stated “that fundamentalism on his part is beyond the bounds of legitimacy.”
A major weakness of the book seems to be the deliberate decision of the author to minimize the welcomed and obvious changes huge segments of America’s whites have experienced in this murky and lamentable area of race relations. Beyond debate is the conclusion that there has been real and genuine progress here. That there needed to be massive improvements can be overwhelmingly confirmed by a quick perusal of old and recent history. That the battle for justice and equality for all American citizens is far from over is perhaps the major lesson one could draw from these pungent pages.
An example of the author’s approach to racial imbalance is stated in his introduction: “Whatever has been done, it’s not enough. It is not enough because the white supremacist society still exists. The fact that it exists should cause us discomfort everyday” (xvii).
One rather reluctantly concludes that his solution to this racial enigma is the complete dismantling of the American white society without spelling out what should take its place or how it could come about. “In the arena of racial justice in the contemporary United States, this mean articulating the painful truth that whiteness is depraved and degraded” (xix-xx).
The serious Christian may want to read this little book, but it ought to be read with a goal in mind—perhaps not to dismantle the fabric of a society that has many within it who have tried sincerely and successfully to help solve this dilemma, but to keep on striving with a sensitive Christian conscience toward the beautiful and ultimately achievable goal—Justice For All!
