How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America - Powerful Historical Nonfiction for Book Clubs & Classroom Discussions

Dr. Smith said in a recent interview that some people don't know and some people don't want to know. This is a book for those who don't know the history of slavery in America and its continued profound impact on all aspects of our society, and it's likely that those who think they know actually don't. As a history-lover who was raised in Atlanta and believed myself well-versed in this subject, I realized that there is far more to it than I thought.Dr. Smith brings the reader to areas that demonstrate what slavery was and how it continues to influence us 150 years later. Beginning in Monticello and discussing how recently Jefferson's true story was uncovered and presented, he then takes us to Whitney Plantation where the emphasis is on the slaves instead of the building; Angola Prison to see how incarceration is often a continuation of slavery; Blandford Cemetery to explore how many people refuse to acknowledge the root cause of the Civil War so they can glorify the Confederacy; Galveston Island to discuss the struggle we continue to face after slavery "ended"; New York City to demonstrate that slavery impacted all Americans and not just Southerners; and Goree Island in Senegal to explain how the story reaches beyond our country. He closes by recounting conversations with his grandparents showing that history is personal, inside each of us, and embodied in our family stories and legacies. Throughout this tour we see that slavery is not in the distant past--Dr. Smith notes that his grandfather's grandfather was born into slavery, and that our country had slavery for 250 years but has only been without it for 150 years--and remains embedded in our society in ways we either don't realize or overlook.The uniqueness of this book largely comes from Dr. Smith being both a poet and a historian. His mastery of language takes us not only to the sites through the use of powerful evocative imagery, but allows us to reflect on the experience of an enslaved person. He notes that while stories are often told about Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman, they were extraordinary individuals; what about the average person like us? What's their story? Dr. Smith's doctorate in history means that he can explain the importance of each site, find the errors in how stories are told, and share documents (usually primary source) that explain the truth behind the presentations. His training also means he doesn't allow himself the easy way out; yes he shows that the Civil War really was about slavery, but he also notes that the House of Slaves and Door of No Return on Goree Island are probably not accurately portrayed either,While history books are typically written in the third person with an objective bent (in theory if not reality, since history is never objectively told), Dr. Smith puts himself squarely in the story. He explains how it feels to sit in the electric chair in Angola and shares a narrative from someone who experienced a failed execution; he crawls into solitary confinement in Angola and on Goree Island to image how that could break someone; he shares his incredulous anger at the Angola gift shop (with coffee mugs calling it a "gated community"). He re-uses one of his poems to describe a Black child running on streets named after Confederate Generals and what that signifies. He also talks to people, including multiple tour guides, fellow visitors to Monticello (who were history buffs but had no idea Jefferson owned slaves), and--in a particularly powerful scene--attendees at a Sons of Confederate Veterans event at Blandford Cemetery where he legitimately wants to understand their points of view. Dr. Smith is empathic in all of these situations but also holds people accountable for their actions and beliefs. He doesn't argue with people, but presents information and lets them decide what to do with it. He does this with the reader as well.This book arrives at a time when arguments regarding Critical Race Theory are embroiling our country. State legislators and congressional representatives are attempting to abolish all teaching that suggests systemic racism exists in this country. While this book conclusively demonstrates that this hypothesis is false, I find one example particularly powerful. Angola Prison--which is the largest maximum security prison in the US, and the size of Manhattan--is located on a former plantation. Seventy percent of its prisoners are black, with an average sentence of 87 years. Many of its prisoners were convicted by a non-unanimous jury, which is now unconstitutional. Prisoners work the fields for seven cents an hour and are watched over by armed guards on horseback. Dr. Smith notes, "If in Germany today there were a prison built on top of a former concentration camp, and that prison disproportionately incarcerated Jewish people, it would rightly provoke outrage through the world." Somehow, in the US this is not only accepted but worthy of commemorating on a coffee mug and tee-shirts. Slavery and its effects remain strong in this country.We have work to do.