After a historical overview of the plight of the slaves, Gray shows that a study conducted in 1994 revealed that 77% of American blacks felt that American society is unfair to black people, 79% found the legal system to be so, and 83% thought so of the economic system. On the other hand, respondents were split about the need to form a political party based on race. Consequently, he draws a distinction between racial solidarity among African Americans and ‘black nationalism’. The latter implies that the community is a comprehensive one, with a clear ideology and political goals. While the study shows that such fervor does not exist, he argues that America could face a wave of black nationalism if conditions continue as is.

To American society, crime and drug problems have become a black problem. Gray finds that the criminal justice system that constantly targets black men is partly looking to push them into the prison-industrial system. Drug policies criminalize drug users- those who use but do not trade- making a serious health problem a crime. Many states depend on prison construction and operation as an integral part of their economy. In some rural areas, the prison has replaced the farm or the factory as the main employer, and high prison occupation implies more profit for companies as prisoners are used as laborers. He calls for direct action against this ‘drug war’ that he believes the government is waging against African Americans and minority groups because it has not decreased the rate of drug use in the country and because the propaganda disseminated by this war ‘reinforces the notion that the enemy possesses an inherent or genetic predisposition to violence’.

Not to negate the presence of a drug abuse problem, Gray examines the root causes behind deviance among the black community. The lack of entry level employment for the youth feeds the drug industry among minority groups. Drugs then become the poor person’s anti-depressant and his substitute to professional health care. The criminalization of drug use pushes it into the black market and increases its price. The value of the product and its profitability means that dealers would resort to violence to protect their trade. Consequently, only a structural approach could put an end to this status quo. Gray carefully quotes Martin Luther King to sum up his argument: “if a soul is left in darkness, sins will be committed. The guilty one is not he who commits the sins, but he who causes the darkness”.

According to the author, civil rights movements-such as the million man march- as well as American politicians have advanced race issues in a manner that is demeaning to the black community. While Clinton was hailed as the first president to reach out to the black community after it had been neglected by both Reagan and Bush Senior, Gray criticizes him for continuing the trend of making associations between crime and race. He cites the example of a speech where he addressed the black community saying that Martin Luther King would be ‘ashamed’.

Highlighting the importance of addressing the African-American community’s concerns in a meaningful manner, Gray even deconstructs Barack Obama’s speeches to find demeaning comments. Referring to black men as ‘boys’ and insinuating that they are irresponsible ‘passes on one of the lowest of all the smears and stereotypes: the lie that black men have no morals’. The only reason the black audience would accept such an approach from Obama is because he is black himself. His rather exaggerated view of the president lays bare a sense of bitterness and an apologetic approach to the problems of America’s black community, of which he only sees the system to be of fault.