new news
Charlayne Hunter-Gault is world-class journalist and author. She has an immaculate track record with civil right crusades, from desegregation in the American South to anti-apartheid efforts in South Africa. As the one of the two first black students to cross race lines at the University of Georgia, she brings a unique perspective to post-apartheid Africa, its lingering inequities, power coups, and fledgling democracies.The New York Times, The New Yorker, and NPR have all availed themselves of her writing. Her journalism is spackled with awards and her hair should be. She now lives in South Africa, which means there’s a a razor-slim chance we could interview her. Fasting and supplication should start now.
This is Charlayne’s most recent book. If the title alone doesn’t sell it to you, here’s an excerpt from the introduction:
“On my annual trips home to the United States from South Africa, I am constantly amazed at how little of the good news- or what I prefer to call the ‘new news’- about Africa is getting through to most Americans. With rare exceptions, the people I encounter, from all walks and stations of life, still think of Africa as the ‘dark continent,’ made darker still by the ravages of AIDS and the ongoing conflicts that occasionally produce enough carnage to merit a minute or two on a television newscast. […] At the moment, it is a continent at a critical moment in its history, with its nations undergoing change, albeit at different stages, and in many cases transformation.”
So beg, borrrow, or steal if you need. I bought.
