The Man-Not: Race, Class, Genre, and the Dilemmas of Black Manhood

I've read (and am now re-reading) this monumental work.Dr. Curry has written a needed and timely book that both deconstructs popular gender theory "mythologies" as it surrounds the varied forms of victimization that construct the reality of life for black men. Through a strong read of history, philosophy, gender theory, and black male studies, the greatest contribution of Curry's work is his strident insistence on both the centrality of black male vulnerability within an anti-black society, and his insistence on making this vulnerability a useful tool for theory in the development of gender studies.This book also provides a strong indictment of both the multifaceted terrain of black male oppression in an anti-black society (racial, sexual, economic), and the relative silence on, and the decentering of, black men's experiences within the canon of gender studies--which is, according to Curry, weakened for its inability to link intersectional theory to the real-world settings of black men and their varied victimizations. It is particularly Curry's focus on the sexual victimization of black men at the hands of white men AND women, coupled with his racial and economic disadvantages, that places black men in the unique position of a kind of "triple jeopardy" (to borrow from Theresa Hoover). The black man, like his female counterpart, faces varied oppression(s) at the level of race, sex, and class. This has been an overlooked, and frankly, an ignored feature of gender theory infused with race theory.Beyond this, at its most basic, and profound level, Curry's text also makes central the argument for a complex reading of black male life and thought--especially as it relates to gender and sexuality. Black men and boys are more than a "DuBoisian problem"--black men and boys are NOT "copy-cats" of white masculinity norms--black men and boys are more than corpses grounded in historical trend of effervescent white male and female lust for the destruction and exploitation of black male flesh-as-phallus. We should make a better effort to read black men as manifestations of their total experiences of oppression, and to connect these experiences to his self-development and self-identity. In sum, gender theory, per Curry's work, must move beyond the simple-minded and reductionistic depictions of black manhood and open itself to black male humanity--in all its forms and through his particular self-definitions and reflections on his existence.Given its interdisciplinary trajectory, this will be a welcome resource for scholars interested in Africana philosophy, black male studies, and American race and sexuality studies, just name a few fields. The Man-Not will prove to be a foundational text for scholarship that envisions different conceptions of black manhood beyond the limitations of academia, and beyond the insidious distortions of racist logics that pervade our discourses of black manhood.

This book is one who's time has come. It's simply amazing to me that as introspective and studious as I am, that I wasn't even aware of the level of dismissal of my own victimization in my 45 years on this planet. From molestation and physical abuse to my acculturation to attempt to be a memetic pale male, this book opened my eyes to the reality that everything about what and who I truly am as a Black male is ignored and replaced with caricature.Although this book is definitely heavy reading for a non-gender/genre studies reader (It took me awhile to understand that Dr. Curry was writing this book primarily for an academic audience, necessitating the use of technical terms and jargon), it's worth the effort. This book is not only illustrative of the reality that Black masculinity isn't something defined by the reality of Black male life, it details that everyone in this society (including unfortunately many Black females) have a vested interest in refusing to study, chronicle, and build theories that reflect our actual place in this society. This book is a searing indictment of academia as well as the society-at-large for their complicity in maintaining and sustaining the stereotypes/caricatures that allow the entire society to ignore Black male death, victimization, and ultimate destruction. If you read no other book this year, this should be the one. As a man-not, I am beyond grateful to Dr. Curry for being willing to take one for the team and publish what I hope will one day become the master text for a new generation of scholars of Black masculinity/maleness.

This book really is one of kind literature that has shaped how I view reading. A catalyst for thought while giving perspective to history & the now for black people (specifically black men).

Dr. Tommy Curry in this groundbreaking research on Black males sojourning in a world that is antithetical to their existence, has become the Father of Black Male Studies. He has provided a theoretical framework that challenges feminist and racist theories that seek to incarcerate the understanding of Black males within the confines of White male patriarchy. He provides an ideological lens that provides Black males with keys to self discovery that far exceeds the boundaries imposed on them by a world set on their non-being. Dr. Curry gives voice to the voiceless Black males who not only find themselves dominated by white supremacist, but also the programmed and brainwashed thoughts, speech, and actions of others who mirror himself.The Man-Not is spot-on terminology for the existence of Black males who find themselves born into a world that makes of them monsters and monstrosities from birth, to the cradle, to the grave. In courageously taking on the arduous task of charting a course for Black male theoretical thought about his own existential experiences in a world of white supremacy, Dr. Curry has no doubt become a drum major for Justice. His life work will inevitably help to solve the age old race problem that vehemently opposes the coming into fruition of Truth, Justice, Love, & Correctness that is necessary for the realization of Peace in the earth amid the affairs of humanity and all things.This work is the stuff of Universal logic that will help end the system of white supremacy and replace it with what Neely Fuller, Jr. espouses as a system of Justice. A just system that guarantees that no person is ever dominated or mistreated or allowed to be. A just system that guarantees that the person that needs help the most, receives the most constructive help.I am personally grateful for this monumental work, as it comes at a time in my academic journey wherein I am completing my doctoral thesis/dissertation entitled, “The School-to-Prison Pipeline: Avoiding the First Steps”. The Man-Not lends much credence to my research that reveals Black males as most adversely impacted by this phenomenon. Many of the truths spoken herein, confirms and affirms the need to give voice to theory that presents a true depiction of the root cause analysis of Black male incarceration and death.Thank you Dr. Curry. I’m eternally indebted to your scholarship and life work.Cleo D. White, Sr.

Since the late 60s I have been pondering why black men suffered a special form of oppression? When I became a grandparent of a black little boy I wondered why he was targeted for harsh treatment for just being a boy.? Even a spell in the Trotskyist left offered no answers. This book has been an import missing key to this mystery but makes for grim reading!

C'est parfait.

Very insightful, brilliant book! This book really nuances all kinds of assumptions.

Unlike George Subira "Money Issues" Tommy J Curry writes for an academic audience if not only writing in Ana academic perspective. Not being nearly as read as he is this defitnely worked against him in what is otherwise a radical and seminal text countering much anti male anti blackness- read anti black male anti blackness. His ideas not only deserve study they need it as do his many visits to the COWS radio broadcast .