A Black author discusses her new book as a declaration of her right to exist beyond limiting narratives. She emphasizes personal responsibility and self-reliance, noting how controversial that message has become. Dennis Prager frames it as part of America's long struggle between individual responsibility and collective narratives.
And by the way, that's not a shot at some of the amazing people I worked with there. Obviously, I love my publisher. She really fought for me every step of the way. Her name was Natasha, and she understands me. And I'm so pleased to know that she can go into those meetings with an "I told you so." You know? "I told you so. I knew this book would be a success." And I'm just grateful to so many Americans—and not just Americans; people all over the world are buying this book—for helping me win, you know, for helping me win. The title was really just me saying, "I am allowed to exist," right? And that is such a sad thing, but I had to fight to exist, to be seen outside of the box of what the media and the politicians are insisting that Black Americans must think and feel. I basically— the moral of my book, the irony, is I am not a victim, and we should be responsible for ourselves, personal responsibility. We live in an age now, Dennis Prager, where you have to fight to publish a thesis about being personally responsible. And that is, that's sad that that's the state of things today.
That's right. That is the state. Well, it's been the state of things consistently because, you know, I've been in this so long and that's been the fight the whole time. We're not individuals. We're now the opposite of what America has wanted, which was the sanctity
Life, Legacy, and a Dangerous Mission in the Soviet Union | Sunday Fireside Chat
