Cornell West (left) blasted Ta-Nehisi Coates’ view of Black freedom as “too narrow.” (Images courtesy of Twitter)
Political activist Cornel West threw what many are calling “intellectual shade” at author Ta-Nehisi Coates this week, blasting Coates for his “apolitical pessimism” and narrow view of the Black American freedom struggle.
In an opinion piece for The Guardian, West voiced his dissatisfaction with the ideas laid out in Coates’ latest book, “We Were Eight Years In Power,” a collection of essays he penned for The Atlantic magazine detailing Barack Obama’s rise to the presidency. The novel, which hit shelves back in October also, highlights the issue of white supremacy and how it permeates American society.
West was unimpressed with Coates’ work, however, and had no problem saying so.
“Coates and I come from a great tradition of the Black freedom struggle,” West wrote of the journalist and comic book writer. ” … He represents the neo-liberal wing that sounds militant about white supremacy but renders Black fightback invisible. This wing reaps the benefits of the neo-liberal establishment that rewards silences on issues, like Wall Street greed or Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands and people.”
The sharply worded critique didn’t end there, though. West accused Coates of “fetishizing” white supremacy and vying for white acceptance while gallivanting for Barack Obama. He also criticized Coates’ idea of “defiance,” pegging it as all talk and no action.
“Coates praises Obama as a ‘deeply moral human being’ while remaining silent on the 563 drone strikes, the assassination of US citizens with no trial, the 26,171 bombs dropped on five Muslim-majority countries in 2016,” he continued. ” … It’s clear that his narrow racial tribalism and myopic political neoliberalism has no place for keeping track [of] Wall Street greed, U.S. imperial crimes or black elite indifference to poverty.”
West’s drag of Coates drew mixed reactions from Black Twitter, however, with many coming to the author’s defense.
Cornel West had the whole horrible world to write about but instead revisited another one of his grudges with another prominent black person who has surpassed him in prominence.
— Joel D. Anderson (@byjoelanderson) December 17, 2017
Cornel West is jealous of Ta-Nehisi Coates. We have seen this record play before. He did the same thing with Michael Eric Dyson. He is the proverbial crab in a barrel. While we are all about to suffer from #GOPTaxScam , Cornel is concerned with Coates being "competition".
— Ebony Noor, Black Pic Still Running Her Mouth (@DarlingEbony) December 17, 2017
Is Cornel West the Azealia Banks of blackademia
— Man of the Decade (@MissZindzi) December 18, 2017
We really out here with a President that is trying to rip the safety net from America's poor and middle class and constantly attacking our LGBTQ/Muslim/Black fam and Cornel West is writing think pieces about Ta-Nehisi Coates being a pessimist.
— Fannie's Dream (@fanniesdream) December 17, 2017
I love Dr. Cornel West. Truly I do. But at this point I need him to write the book that he’s holding Coates accountable for not writing.
— Billy Michael Honor (@BillyMHonor) December 17, 2017
Even acclaimed author and academic Jelani Cobb backed Coates, calling West’s critique of the author “petty rivalry” cloaked as “disinterested analysis.”
4. In your obsequious stanning for Bernie you must’ve overlooked the part where he dismissed the idea of black reparations. Moreover, those demands were kept alive in the black nationalist grassroots tradition — not the interracial left you so idolize.
— jelani cobb (@jelani9) December 18, 2017
8. You had Ta-Nehisi’s number. You know his pops well. You could’ve debated with him about whatever the issues were. But you didn’t. Because this isn’t really about intellectual differences.
— jelani cobb (@jelani9) December 18, 2017
Frankly I preferred not to say any of this. @tanehisicoates is a grown man. He can fight his own battles. But it’s a little tiresome to see and hear the hypocritical bullshit of academics who would prefer the community not be defended if doing so means accolades for someone else.
— jelani cobb (@jelani9) December 18, 2017
Still, other’s agreed with what West had to say.
I see no lies here and—quite frankly—the folks feigning outrage over this piece are deploying obfuscation to avoid dealing with the substantive criticisms West makes against Coates, Obama, and neoliberalismhttps://t.co/CYdYoLDull
— I’m Black and I’m not voting for Biden (@rtyson82) December 17, 2017
Cornel West was never really "wrong" abt Obama. It was just too obvious that this was really personal for him and that tainted an otherwise keen criticism.
— 🌺 skkrrtt cobain (@tirhakahlove) December 17, 2017
Cornel West lambasted from “black twitter” because he spoke the truth about Obama’s failure in the black community – highest black unemployment & food stamp dependency, not to mention crimes against humanity.
Wrong person vilified.— 🇺🇸 Tiff 🇺🇸 (@LATiffani1) December 17, 2017
Many have dismissed Cornel West because he challenged Obama/Hillary/Coates. But I don’t think those same folks have truly wrestled with the substance of his critique. Because in dismissing him without engaging him you prove his point: neoliberalism views people as disposable.
— Jorge J Rodríguez V (@JJRodV) December 17, 2017
