Bakari Sellers

Bakari Sellers is the book’s author. The book is structured in part as an autobiography, but Bakari makes a point of connecting aspects of his life to aspects of American society at large. Bakari was born in North Carolina, but his family moved to the town of Denmark, South Carolina when Bakari was six years old. His parents were both highly educated, but they sometimes struggled to support Bakari and his siblings. Bakari grew up in a rural, impoverished, predominantly black town. In part due to his parents’ encouragement, he was a hard-working student, and he was accepted to Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia. After doing a summer internship for Congressman Jim Clyburn, Bakari became interested in politics.

Bakari became involved in student government, and as soon as he graduated from college, he ran for a seat in the South Carolina House of Representatives. He...