Race Crazy: BLM, 1619, and the Progressive Racism Movement

by Charles Love

The progressive left has gone Race Crazy—and they want to take America down the same path of insanity.

When did America become obsessed with racial differences? After decades of progress healing real-world prejudices and anger, we suddenly live in an America where we’re expected to view every single thing through the lens of race.

Children are taught the politics of racial resentment and fear in schools. Films, novels, and even comic books are judged by the color of their protagonists—and their adherence to the latest “woke” messaging. Corporate America has universally adopted the slogan “Black Lives Matter” in every piece of marketing, those words serving as a talisman to protect them from Twitter mobs and outraged activists. And the 1619 Project and similar pieces of academic propaganda seek to redefine and undermine the very notion of America as a unified and great nation.

Meanwhile, organized BLM advances a radical and dangerous political agenda which, if enacted, would mean the end of the American experiment as we know it. The nation faces a pivotal will we reject the Race Crazies, or let them destroy us?

Genres: Cultural, Sociology, Politics, Nonfiction

304 pages, Hardcover

Published November 9, 2021

Reviews

[Ken Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Suspicions confirmed. The anti racist movement is severely racist.

[Caroline Chase · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rational Analysis

This book helped me to understand BLM, 1619, and the PRM much more fully. I appreciated the rational analysis of each and left the reading with more hope than I have had that we can continue to make progress on civil rights for all in our country as we have promised. We are a young nation with the most diverse population of all nations trying to do something that has never been done in this history of the world. Pulling together as one people rather than promoting ideologies that tear us apart is the only way we will reach our goals.

[Chris Boutté · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve heard some buzz about this book and listened to a couple interviews with the author, but I was on the fence about reading it. The author was cool enough to send me an early copy, so I decided I’d check it out. This book is definitely worth the read, and as a progressive lefty, it definitely had me rethinking a few things. There were great parts of the book and other parts that I wasn’t a fan of.

As far as the positive aspects, Charles Love has done an insane amount of research, and I learned a lot about some of the organizations out there. Personally, I was completely unaware of a lot of the shadiness and ambiguity with the BLM organization. In the book, Charles discusses the lack of transparency with the organization and how we don’t really know where the funds are going. He also makes excellent points about some of the organizations missions and how they may not be helpful for the overall cause, which is definitely a problem with quite a few progressive movements. The book also broke down the problems with the 1619 project, which I’ve been wanting to learn more about.

My criticisms of the book are that although in the intro he says the book is written for people like me (those on the left that he’s looking to persuade), a lot of it came off as a book to explain to his side why they’re right. There are quite a few parts of the book that explains what “they” think, and since I’m in that group, there were many times when I was reading it and couldn’t think of anyone I know who thinks that way. There were also instances of cherry-picking weak arguments from progressives that are limited to a minority of the group. I’ll give the author the benefit of the doubt by saying that maybe he just hasn’t heard the stronger arguments. But overall, it’s a good book, and I’m glad I read it. I’m also in the unique position of interviewing authors for my podcast, so I’ll be able to have a discussion with him about some of these topics and get a better idea of his arguments when we chat.

[Jeff Francis · Rating 3 out of 5]

A staggering number of Americans who support Black Lives Matter probably don’t know anything about the group beyond the sentiment in its name. Of course the lives of Black people matter! What decent, right-minded person would disagree?

But among these ostensible supporters of BLM, what could they really tell you about the organization? Its mission, its origin, its funding? Have the people who put BLM signs in their yards ever been on its website and read the ‘preamble’?

These questions are among many addressed by Black conservative Charles Love in his new book, “Race Crazy: BLM, 1619, and the Progressive Racism Movement.” Love asserts that BLM holds many positions of which its vocal supporters are clueless. What’s more, it’s a striking example of hiding-in-plain-sight. Going through their self-published material, Love damns BLM with its own words.

The subsequent part of the book continues in the same vein with the “1619 Project.” These sections reinforce a point I’ve long believed: anyone who thinks history neatly confirms any modern political philosophy doesn’t understand how history works. History is messy, often contradictory, and thinking it’s not is the epitome of confirmation bias.

Love is, again, a Black conservative (a group whose numbers seem to be growing). As a Democrat there were parts of this book that annoyed me, such as a head-scratching quip about Benghazi (one that would’ve been quite the zinger… eight years ago). However, “Race Crazy” still makes enough good, well-researched points that it should be part of any conversation about the topics it addresses.

[Steven H · Rating 2 out of 5]

A CONSERVATIVE BLACK AUTHOR/COMMENTATOR REJECTS THESE MOVEMENTS

Author Charles Love wrote in the Introduction to this 2021 book, “The 1960s Civil Rights movement … has been stood on its head. In our now race-obsessed society, one’s identity… has reverted to being tribal and genetically determined… Any serious person can see how these things are the opposite of equality, will magnify social hostility, and will do more harm than good… Our silent acquiescence in the face of the irrational and immoral is only bolstering these activists, which is leading to a societal breakdown. This can no longer be tolerated. Borrowing from the radicals themselves, we must ‘resist.’ This is what [this book] sets out to do. It is about what I call ‘the progressive racism movement’---an extreme left-wing movement organized to re-engineer society by judging and treating people according to their skin color. Ironically, this is done under the guise of rooting out racism… The book will describe, in great detail, why this movement is dangerous, and what we need to do to reverse the racist trend they are promoting.” (Pg. xiv)

He continues, “[This book] will show how this movement, under the guise of addressing ‘systemic racism,’ actually sets back race relations and undermines the values of our nation. Black Lives Matter generates anger and fear while making enemies of police and most whites; the Movement for Black Lives spreads disinformation and proposes legislation that promotes inequality; and the 1619 Project presents racialized fiction as American history, aimed at shaming and dispiriting whites, while making blacks feel like entitled victims.” (Pg. xxv-xxv)

He goes on, “My goal is to offer fair-minded readers a logical analysis of these groups’ beliefs and demands… it is important to note that I took all the quotes, demands, and actions listed in the book directly from the Black Lives Matter and Movement for Black lives websites as well as essays within The 1619 Project. As the movement drew more attention and many well-deserved attacks, they started to make adjustments to their sites, often removing information that would seem controversial. For instance, the often0cited language about the nuclear family is gone from the Black Lives Matter website. I can only assume that as they get more scrutiny, and after the book is released, there will be more changed. The information is accurate as of the time of the writing.” (Pg. xxvi)

He explains, “As I dug deeper into the movement, I found that Black Lives Matter is not designed to effect any real change. They are primarily the chaos arm of a larger apparatus. When the police shoot someone, it is BLM’s job to get people to the scene and to protest. Protestors start looting? It is Black Lives Matter who comes out and says, ‘Looting is reparations.’ They can be heard saying, ‘If we don’t get what we want, we will burn the country to the ground,’ but they never clearly say exactly what it is that they want.: (Pg. xxi)

He clarifies, “Let me clearly state that every police shooting should be investigated, and all officers found to have used force improperly or excessively should be prosecuted. But each situation is different, and acting as if police shootings or unarmed blacks is an ‘epidemic,’ or placing the blame solely on the police officer, is both foolish and counterproductive.” (Pg. 14)

He observes, “The problems that blacks face in low-income neighborhoods are on display daily. They are on display daily. They are discussed at community meetings and public hearings across the country, but Black Lives Matter is rarely part of these conversations. They fan the flames of police hatred but rarely take an active role in improving conditions for those struggling in the community. And if their absence in the community wasn’t bad enough, many blacks are beginning to point out that they have not seen any signs of the millions of dollars Black Lives Matter has collected on their behalf.” (Pg. 19-20)

He asserts, “Black Lives Matter is similar to antifa in that it has no real purpose besides wreaking havoc and tearing down the country. Demanding redistribution of wealth or equity over equality is not the talk of serious advocates for positive change. Instead of offering solutions, these groups opt to divide the country along racial and socioeconomic lines and chant ‘feel good’ rhetoric that attracts those with little understanding of the unique freedoms on which this country was founded.” (Pg. 41) Later, he contends, “the Black Lives Matter movement is a complicated web of connected groups, It is basically a race-based Ponzi scheme.” (Pg. 54)

He notes, “With all this focus on race and protesting, they found time to attack the electoral college. This is one of the most important mechanisms protecting our republic, which is one of the reasons the left wants to dismantle it. Without the electoral college, the left would have unbridled power, as the most populous cities are leftist bastions and would dominate the popular vote, controlling the ‘flyover country’ they despise and do not understand.” (Pg. 71)

He quotes the ‘Vision for Black Lives’ Preamble, and points out, “There are two key takeaways… The first is that there are not over 170 organizations in the Movement for Black Lives ‘ecosystem.’ The second is the group conspicuously missing from their focus---black men. They go on to thank those who helped them focus on black women, feminists, trans women, queer, trans feminists, and disability justice. For a movement that was started because black men were allegedly being indiscriminately killed by police, it is glaring that they did not make the list of focus groups.” (Pg. 73) Later, he adds, “They are aggressively pro-woman. In fact, they place a lot of their focus on people who are femme, queer, trans, disabled, Muslim, gender nonconforming, migrants, drug addicts, sex workers, formerly and currently incarcerated, and illegal, yet they never mention men or Jews.” (Pg. 141)

He says, “They also want to end gang databases and the sharing of data with police and ICE, and implement a ban on suspensions, expulsions, and arrests for all pre-K through twelfth-grade students. They believe that no one under twenty-three years of age should be incarcerated. If the tools that help keep weapons and criminal behavior out of the schools are banned… what happens to the innocent kids who are simply trying to learn?... they say nothing about improving academic excellence… They focus only on removing punitive policies that deal with bad behavior and preventative measures that are in place to protect the students… To the Movement for Black Lives, punishing bad behavior is racist.” (Pg. 93)

Turning to the 1619 Project, he states, “This belief is critical race theory on steroids… The 1619 Project goes further. The problem is not a few misguided, racist laws here and there. It is that slavery and its remnants are alive today. It is that slavery and its remnants are alive today. This is similar to the belief that police are hunting black men, once you accept this belief as a fact, no facts to the contrary will convince you otherwise.” (Pg. 149)

He argues, “Even if I concede that slavery was a necessary ingredient in the recipe of America, there would still be a serious problem with the conclusion the 1619 Project draws from it. The editor-in-chief … [states] that EVERYTHING exceptional about America grew out of slavery… Emphasizing the horrors of slavery is fair, but they go so far as to imply that whites contributing nothing… everything developed in America was either made by slaves and stolen by whites or created by luck. Slavery is the only contribution made by whites.” (Pg. 155)

He suggests, “If racism is the main reason blacks are poor, giving them money is not going to teach them financial management. If racism makes blacks angry, criminal justice reform is not going to teach them anger management. Assuming racism caused obesity by creating ‘food deserts,’ mandating healthy options in black communities will not change eating habits. If racism is the reason black children are lagging behind all others in academic achievement, adding the 1619 Project to their curriculum won’t teach them what they need to succeed in the world. It will only cause them to view themselves as perpetual victims…” (Pg. 158)

He says of lawyer Bryan Stevenson (executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative), “Things Stevenson describes like solitary confinement and criminalizing blacks are wrong, and addressing them is a good thing. But living in the past and rehashing slavery is not the way to improve the system. He, and the others at the 1619 Project… see discrepancies and instantly assume a sinister plot… he needs to be reminded of a realty that is plaguing the black citizens… There is a crime problem that disproportionately affects black communities… It is disingenuous to ignore the crime stats, as crime levels correlate with incarceration rates.” (Pg. 243-244)

He summarizes, “The 1619 Project cannot be taught because it is a toxic, anti-American, politically biased, defeatist collection of propaganda. While it is wrapped in enough truth to prevent it from being classified as fiction, its core is opinion and should not be allowed anywhere near a social studies or history classroom.” (Pg. 257)

He concludes, “Black Lives Matter is based on the argument that police are regularly executing black men, many of them unarmed. For this to be true, one must believe that police are willing to shoot innocent blacks but prefer to arrest guilty ones. What other explanation could there be for intelligent people to argue both that black men are being hunted down and killed by police AND that mass incarceration of blacks is a problem?... The progressive racism movement is anti-American. Black Lives Matter makes demands… that, if enacted, would end the country as we know it. The 1619 Project claims… that American capitalism is bad and out founding principles are a lie. No honest person can believe any of this about the country and still profess to support it.” (Pg. 265-266)

This book will be of great interest to those seeking critical rejections of movements such as BLM and the 1619 Project; but others may find that Love’s criticisms (which, to be sure, are amply based upon quotations from their websites and publications) go too far, and are thus unpersuasive.

[Brandon Carter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Late last year I started seeking out material from Black Thinkers who disagree the progressive “anti-racist” movement that has been in ascendency since the summer of 2020. Of course that movement was well underway before then, but was catalyzed by the murder of George Floyd by white police officers.

But in 2021 I started to notice something: While a lot of very politically active white people that I knew were pushing this movement quite intensely, most of the black people I knew seemed indifferent about it at best.

So I decided to see if there was a line of Black Thinkers out there that disagree with this movement and have better ideas to make the lives of Black Americans better. After all, I guess it’s helpful for white people to sit every day and ponder their privilege. I guess they feel that it’s helpful for them to go yell at other white people about it, but do either of those things really do anything for Black people? An increasingly visible set of Black thinkers say no. Turns out Kendi isn’t the only game in town.

Charles Love is one of those thinkers. His book, “Race Crazy,” is a good addition to a bookshelf of anyone who is interested in the topic. In it he offers critiques of Black Lives Matter, the Movement For Black Lives, and the 1619 Project.

His critique of BLM should be familiar to those who have looked into the issue. First, that while police violence (and specifically police violence against Black people) is horrendous, the statistics don’t support that it’s at the epidemic levels that BLM purports it to be. Second, their own sanctioning of violence in response and the ends justify the means approach does far more damage to the cause of racial justice than it helps.

In the next section he covers the agenda of the Movement For Black Lives, which is a somewhat shadowy political organization that manages funds for BLM and other race based social justice groups. Love offers a point by point rebuttal of the agenda on their website. Honestly I thought this section kind of descends into rambling, making the same points over and over again. To be fair to Love though, the agenda itself is a rambling document that makes the same point over and over again.

Where the book really shines is it’s critique of the 1619 Project. He points out a number of just plain factual errors that occur, things that really should not have made it past an editor. He also does a great job picking apart the idea that everything in America can be traced back to slavery. Slavery was awful, and in many ways Black Americans are still not given a fair shake today. Those things are indisputable, and Love doesn’t dispute them. He does talk about how, in his estimation, the continued focus on slavery undermines the Black Community by stripping them of their own agency and giving people an excuse to maintain a victim mentality.

Some people will balk at this book since the author is a political conservative. I urge you to look past that. I’m not a strict conservative, but I found it useful. If you absolutely cannot move beyond that, I would suggest checking out “Woke Racism,” by John McWhorter.

[Rob Alexander · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a must read for those who are concerned about the current conditions of race relations in America.

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is about the fourth book I have read on this topic. I liked that the author found expanded information on the BLM movement, showing that it is backed by people with an ulterior motive (not really to help African-Americans.) I like his correction of some of the myths the BLM and 1619 movements are spreading. It's a good book, especially if you want to know more about BLM.

[Jake · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting read. A bit eye opening.