Publishers Weekly
07/20/2020
Civil rights activist Sharpton (The Rejected Stone) interweaves memoir and progressive polemic in this impassioned survey of contemporary American politics. Highlighting his experiences on the front lines of protests over police brutality, anti-immigration policies, and voter suppression, and frequently drawing lessons from Christian scripture, Sharpton weighs in on a wide range of contemporary political and social issues. He casts Donald Trump’s presidency as a racist, knee-jerk reaction to the Obama presidency; laments the national response to the coronavirus pandemic; and defends former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s national anthem protests as an important symbolic critique of racial inequality. Sharpton also expresses support for the #MeToo movement and the idea that Democratic presidential contender Joe Biden should pick a woman for vice president. Noting that Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric and policies are much harsher than those of his predecessors, Sharpton calls for a broad, multiracial progressive coalition to restore Democrats to the White House in 2020. Lacing his analysis with anecdotes about his interactions with James Brown, Coretta Scott King, Nelson Mandela, and other luminaries, Sharpton makes a persuasive case that America has reached “a historical turning point that’s testing our moral character and endangering all we have fought to gain.” Liberals will be inspired by this well-informed call to action. Agent: Josh Getzler, HG Literary. (Sept.)
From the Publisher
"An ode to the Black lives lost to racial violence… his book shows readers how past and present struggles should guide Americans as they continue the fight for equality for all.” -People Magazine
“By sharing his own personal struggles and experiences, Sharpton offers inspirational lessons for today's social justice activists and supporters of a just world—and for tomorrow's.”—Booklist
"Don’t be surprised if this book sparks conversation and action.. Rise Up won’t let you down." -The Washington Informer
"Rise Up... offers some great stories. That’s a lot of what you’ll get in this book, in fact: stories, and they mix in with Sharpton’s observations and thoughts so well that it’s easy to be lulled into the telling." -Galveston Daily News
“[Rev. Al] Sharpton mounts an impassioned call for activism…A fervent message in hard times.” -Kirkus Reviews
“[An] impassioned survey of contemporary American politics… Sharpton makes a persuasive case that America has reached “a historical turning point that’s testing our moral character and endangering all we have fought to gain.” Liberals will be inspired by this well-informed call to action.”
—Publishers Weekly
"Reading Rise Up was an informative and motivational pleasure to absorb. Full of history, honesty, and valuable suggestions, Rise Up should be a staple in every home, school and library as an essential primer on civil and political rights in America. Rev. Sharpton addresses our nation’s original sin; explains why we can’t afford to be satisfied with creature comforts while others still suffer and offers solutions in the non-violent tradition of my father and others regarding where we go from here. I highly recommend Rise Up without reservation to anyone mature enough to read and grasp the necessity of living life with a heart full of love and devoid of racism.”
–Martin Luther King, III
"Reverend Sharpton has fought on the frontlines for civil rights for decades. As the events of 2020 have shown, that fight is far from over. In this inspiring, personal book, he shows us a path forward. If you want to learn how to use your voice to change a nation, you should study closely this man — and this book."
—Van Jones
"My Bed-Stuy (do or die) brother has been at the forefront of our battles again and again. From way back in da way back to this present revolution the world is in now, Rev. has been about Black Lives Matter from the jump, also at a time when it was not the most popular or hip thing to be about. I look forward, standing next to him, to see, to witness this new energy, this new day that is about to be in these United States of America.”
—Spike Lee
"This man is a gift from God to the world. This book is a gift from Al Sharpton to us. Let’s appreciate them both."—Michael Eric Dyson, from the Foreword
Kirkus Reviews
2020-07-14
The outspoken civil rights leader sees a nation in peril.
Baptist minister, former presidential candidate, and founder of the National Action Network, Sharpton mounts an impassioned call for activism. “The hardest job of being a preacher,” Sharpton writes, “is to eulogize the life of someone who did nothing. And so I say, give me something to work with.” The author believes that the U.S. is “at a historical turning point that’s testing our moral character and endangering all we have fought to gain.” A host of issues need bold solutions, he writes, including the criminal justice system, police brutality, health care, gender equality, LGBTQ+ rights, immigration, climate change, and environmental racism. He derides those he calls latte liberals, “a form of liberalism that smacks of privilege and cocoons itself by staying out of touch with the messiness that often accompanies real hardship”; the Christian right (“not right Christians”); and those who seek only to hold onto power: “the higher up they are in the chain, the more they want to keep things quiet lest they lose the power that got them to that position in the first place.” Sharpton unapologetically portrays himself as a showman who uses his personality as “a lightning bolt for good,” and he cites James Brown, Jesse Jackson, Bishop Frederick Douglas Washington, Adam Clayton Powell, Shirley Chisholm, and, not least, his mother, who nurtured his belief in faith, activism, and responsibility. “If I walk over to you and knock you off your chair, that’s on me,” he writes. “But if I come back next week and you’re still on the floor, that’s on you.” For potential activists, Sharpton offers practical advice: Identify priorities, start small, do your homework, and understand your opposition. As Chisholm once told him, “If they don’t give you a seat at the table, bring a folding chair.”
A fervent message in hard times.
