Memoir of a Race Traitor

Growing up in the so-called 'post civil' rights era with intergrated schooling, myself and other 'white' liberals do not conciously realize what risks our own involvement with this social change entailed for all demographics. Sure we muse about how we also would have participated in sit-ins...etc if we had been born generations earlier, but would we have actually followed through on those same pronouncements? Because her own family was involved in segregation activities, Segrest had an involuntary front-seat to the politics of hatred. This same enviroment unintentionally provided the reinforcement that the white Segrest needed to battle racism begining in the 1960's. Thus, unlike some people who would write this book today only to appear 'politically correct', Segrest has genuine empowerment intentions: She knows that although it is a part of her family's (and the community's past) racisim was not (and is not) right for anybody. It is also possible to love your own family while strongly opposing their politics---and judgements upon yourself. Segrest's innate ability to interconnect various social justice struggles with each other is another strength of this work. Racism, sexism, and homophobia are all different facets of the same bigotry. Preventing full community potential from being realized, all forms of discrimination must be abolished without exception. There is no such thing as 'acceptable' bigotry. Segrest can get too self-righteous at times for some readers(she is hardly the only person in the world who has worked against her own family's politics!), but this book stil expertly explores a VERY personal and political issue not fully addressed in our supposedly more enlightened times.

I write this review to praise Mab Segrest's brilliant, beautiful writing: stylistically lovely, deeply insightful, politically powerful. This book is a must read for anyone invested in US cultural politics from the perspective of a passionate activist and incredibly talented writer (and speaker -- I had the privilege of seeing Mab live and she's FABULOUS).

This diary is fast moving and entertaining, yet it doesn't lose it's impact. Mab Segrest is an activist who has been working against the fascist right for many years. Her focus has been primarily on issues related to race, but she also touches on issues related to being a lesbian. Mab was raised in a family who actively worked to prevent the desegregation of schools, so her diary includes some interesting insights into what it's like to be actively working on political and social fronts that are opposite to those held by your immediate family. She also clearly and completely describes some heartbreaking work she did in the 80s - work that involved investigating the murders of several people, some of which were her friends and mentors. The events and the governmental abuses that led to these deaths are disturbing, yet described without a hint of sensationalism or propaganda - just honesty, and sorrow. The book ends with a 100 page history of the USA in in the past few decades, with an emphasis being placed on race relations and gay and lesbian issues. There's a lot of information in this little biography, and all of it's extremely well written. I highly recommend it.