©2025 Fable Group Inc.
4.5 

Black Prophetic Fire

By Cornel West & Christa Buschendorf
Black Prophetic Fire by Cornel West & Christa Buschendorf digital book - Fable

Publisher Description

An unflinching look at nineteenth- and twentieth-century African American leaders and their visionary legacies.

In an accessible, conversational format, Cornel West, with distinguished scholar Christa Buschendorf, provides a fresh perspective on six revolutionary African American leaders: Frederick Douglass, W. E. B. Du Bois, Martin Luther King Jr., Ella Baker, Malcolm X, and Ida B. Wells. In dialogue with Buschendorf, West examines the impact of these men and women on their own eras and across the decades. He not only rediscovers the integrity and commitment within these passionate advocates but also their fault lines.
 
West, in these illuminating conversations with the German scholar and thinker Christa Buschendorf, describes Douglass as a complex man who is both “the towering Black freedom fighter of the nineteenth century” and a product of his time who lost sight of the fight for civil rights after the emancipation. He calls Du Bois “undeniably the most important Black intellectual of the twentieth century” and explores the more radical aspects of his thinking in order to understand his uncompromising critique of the United States, which has been omitted from the American collective memory. West argues that our selective memory has sanitized and even “Santaclausified” Martin Luther King Jr., rendering him less radical, and has marginalized Ella Baker, who embodies the grassroots organizing of the civil rights movement. The controversial Malcolm X, who is often seen as a proponent of reverse racism, hatred, and violence, has been demonized in a false opposition with King, while the appeal of his rhetoric and sincerity to students has been sidelined. Ida B. Wells, West argues, shares Malcolm X’s radical spirit and fearless speech, but has “often become the victim of public amnesia.”
 
By providing new insights that humanize all of these well-known figures, in the engrossing dialogue with Buschendorf, and in his insightful introduction and powerful closing essay, Cornel West takes an important step in rekindling the Black prophetic fire.

Download the free Fable app

app book lists

Stay organized

Keep track of what you’re reading, what you’ve finished, and what’s next.
app book recommendations

Build a better TBR

Swipe, skip, and save with our smart list-building tool
app book reviews

Rate and review

Share your take with other readers with half stars, emojis, and tags
app comments

Curate your feed

Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communities
app book lists

Stay organized

Keep track of what you’re reading, what you’ve finished, and what’s next.
app book recommendations

Build a better TBR

Swipe, skip, and save with our smart list-building tool
app book reviews

Rate and review

Share your take with other readers with half stars, emojis, and tags
app comments

Curate your feed

Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communities

3 Reviews

4.5
“*I received this book in a Goodreads Giveaway* First of all, this book is labeled as being African American history, this book is SO much more than that. Anyone that is concerned about the state of the U.S. now, the historical leaders and movements as well as how they can inform and affect the current leaders and movements, please pick up this book. Black Prophetic Fire is part manifesto, historical review, self-help book, cultural appreciation... and the list goes on. It offers a dissection of some of the most prolific and important black liberation figures/leaders. However, unlike many books that try to do the same, this book presents different (and highly sourced) perspectives and information. Both contributors offer a meaningful critique of each figure while also explaining why each one deserves to be remembered for their role in the black prophetic tradition. They go on to explain why they are vital to our understanding of the historic and current black liberation struggle, both within movements and with our current "leaders". The dynamic between West and Buschendorf added so much to the discussion. Buschendorf truly fueled the dialogue. Although written in interview-like format, it definitely didn't create a spoon-fed question and answer vibe. Buschendorf asks relevant and insightful questions leading to thorough answers by West. Whether or not you know much about the African American leaders discussed within the book, the conversation will enlighten and challenge you. The structure of the book is divided into sections based on the leader they are discussing. Although you can skip around, I recommend reading it through and through as there is some rhyme or reason to the order of the figures discussed. One of the cons (con seems like a strong word) about this book is that sometimes West gets bogged down in philosophical references or goes off on a name-dropping tangent. However, don't let this deter you. Although the references led to me to refer to quick google searches, the end-notes provided are more than helpful in explaining some of the rhetoric and references. For those with a strong knowledge of philosophy, you will probably not be phased by West's numerous interjections. I was intrigued so I took a lot of notes on his comments - but, for those who don't have any interest in philosophy, try to stick with it, it gets less frequent as the book goes on. One of the main philosophical concepts he discusses is Gramsci's notion of the organic intellectual. Despite this, I truly enjoyed reading this and learned so much based on both the actual subject and the tangents.”

About Cornel West

Cornel West is a prominent and provocative democratic intellectual. A current professor at Union Theological Seminary, he has also taught at Yale, Harvard, and Princeton. The recipient of more than twenty honorary degrees, he has written many important books, including Race Matters and Democracy Matters. He appears frequently on Real Time with Bill Maher, The Colbert Report, Democracy Now, CNN, C-SPAN, and other national and international media. He lives in New York City.
 
Christa Buschendorf is a professor and the chair of American Studies at Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main. She has published on the transatlantic history of ideas and on African American literature.

Christa Buschendorf

Start a Book Club

Start a public or private book club with this book on the Fable app today!

FAQ

Do I have to buy the ebook to participate in a book club?

Why can’t I buy the ebook on the app?

How is Fable’s reader different from Kindle?

Do you sell physical books too?

Are book clubs free to join on Fable?

How do I start a book club with this book on Fable?

Error Icon
Save to a list
0
/
30
0
/
100
Private List
Private lists are not visible to other Fable users on your public profile.
Notification Icon
Fable uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB