A review by kukuku
Silencing the Past, by Michel-Rolph Trouillot

3.0

One "silences" a fact or an individual as a silencer silences a gun... Hard facts are no more frightening than darkness. You can play with them if you are with friends. They are scary only if you read them alone.

People who aren't African-American but who feel they have a right to speak on African-American culture and social practices shouldn't have nearly as many rights as they do!! Other than the moments were that diaspora-war rhetoric came out, I liked this one. MRT's a good storyteller and the mix of theory and italicized narratives in the chapters reminded me of Anne Dufourmantelle's In Praise of Risk, which is a personal favorite, so I could just be biased toward that writing style now.