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    My Vanishing Country: A Memoir
    My Vanishing Country: A Memoir
    My Vanishing Country: A Memoir
    Audiobook5 hours

    My Vanishing Country: A Memoir

    Written by Bakari Sellers

    Narrated by Bakari Sellers

    4.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    What J. D. Vance did for Appalachia with Hillbilly Elegy, CNN analyst  and one of the youngest state representatives in South Carolina history Bakari Sellers does for the rural South, in this important book that illuminates the lives of America’s forgotten black working-class men and women.

    Part memoir, part historical and cultural analysis, My Vanishing Country is an eye-opening journey through the South's past, present, and future.

    Anchored in in Bakari Seller’s hometown of Denmark, South Carolina, Country illuminates the pride and pain that continues to fertilize the soil of one of the poorest states in the nation. He traces his father’s rise to become, friend of Stokely Carmichael and Martin Luther King, a civil rights hero, and member of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) , to explore the plight of the South's dwindling rural, black working class—many of whom can trace their ancestry back for seven generations.

    In his poetic personal history, we are awakened to the crisis affecting the other “Forgotten Men & Women,” who the media seldom acknowledges. For Sellers, these are his family members, neighbors, and friends. He humanizes the struggles that shape their lives: to gain access to healthcare as rural hospitals disappear; to make ends meet as the factories they have relied on shut down and move overseas; to hold on to precious traditions as their towns erode; to forge a path forward without succumbing to despair. 

    My Vanishing Country is also a love letter to fatherhood—to Sellers' father, his lodestar, whose life lessons have shaped him, and to his newborn twins, who he hopes will embrace the Sellers family name and honor its legacy.


    Editor's Note

    New release…

    In his remarkable memoir, Bakari Sellers shares stirring stories of how rural poverty, the trauma of generations of racism, and his parents’ fortitude as activists in the civil rights movement shaped him into a fierce advocate for social justice today.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateMay 19, 2020
    ISBN9780063005037
    Author

    Bakari Sellers

    Bakari Sellers made history in 2006 when, at just twenty-two years old, he defeated a twenty-six-year incumbent State Representative to become the youngest member of the South Carolina state legislature and the youngest African American elected official in the nation. In 2014 he was the Democratic Nominee for Lieutenant Governor in the state of South Carolina. Sellers is a CNN political analyst and served in the South Carolina state legislature. Recently named to ’s 󈬘 Under 40” list, he is also a practicing attorney who fights to give a voice to the voiceless. 

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    Reviews for My Vanishing Country

    4.5/5

    123 ratings12 reviews

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    • 5/5
      It’s a history lesson about his family, route in politics and so much more. I was interested in reading this book knowing that Oprah Winfrey & Tyler Perry read it. It was well worth my time. B. Sellers is not only one to watch but one to follow & be inspired to leave a positive mark on our family, in our community and the world. Now I’m going to buy the book. This one will occupy space on my bookshelf.
    • 5/5
      A good look into the life of a future political superstar. His heart is in the right place. He gained a lifetime vote from me.
    • 5/5
      This book is amazing! I want to interview him! Bravo
    • 4/5
      This was an honest portrayal of our world through the eyes of a southern African American father. Feelings, politics, anxiety, family and all touched upon, it is pure honesty. Keep up the fight Bakari!
    • 5/5
      very beautiful book with powerful quotes i will use for the rest of my life
    • 5/5
      Me. Sellers is poignant and witty, and his words evoke emotion. Would listen to it again!
    • 5/5
      Somebody has to take a stand an tell the truth! Bakari leaves you with a wealth of knowledge, inspiration & heartfelt love with a story that only he could tell. Authentic, passionate and a true affirmation of faith. This book belongs in the hands of every English/History Teacher statewide in South Carolina. Remarkable!
    • 5/5
      The book was very informative. I did not know that Bakari’s dad was active in the Civil Rights Movement.
    • 5/5
      One of the most inspiring books I have ever read!
    • 4/5
      I listened to this with my 21 year-old son, a political wonk since he started canvassing with mommy when he was about 2 and for the past two years a passionate worker against voter suppression in Georgia. The short book, about 5 hours on audio, was a great companion on the drive back to school (his final term in college!) Sellers' story is inspirational, he began serving in the SC statehouse at 22, the youngest member in history and is now a thoughtful commentator. Sellers is admirably honest about difficult subjects (his father's imprisonment that grew out of activism, his anxiety, the pain of having a child with serious health issues, etc.) and a good storyteller. I do think the parallels with our lives made it more special. My son grew up knowing quite a few Morehouse men, and the portion of the book about Sellers' Morehouse experience really resonated. Perhaps even more important we listened less than two weeks after seeing Raphael Warnock (one of my son's idols since the first time he preached in our temple when he was 5) elected to the Senate and the day after we attended our Temple's (Zoom) MLK Shabbat and heard Pastor Sen. Warnock deliver an extraordinary sermon. He always moves us. (Ebenezer Baptist is our sister congregation and it was Pastor Warnock's guidance and wisdom our family sought on the day after the mass murder at Mother Emanuel, an event also covered in the book.) But even without those things this is a really good read, especially for young people with a passion for public service.
    • 3/5
      Bakari Sellers grew up in Denmark, a small town outside of Orangeburg, South Carolina. His father is Cleveland Sellers, a contemporary of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Stokely Carmichael, who was targeted by the authorities during and after the Orangeburg Massacre and who struggled to find employment because of the record he had as a result, until he received a full pardon 25 years later. Bakari Sellers grew up around Civil Rights leaders but also around people who were struggling to get by in Denmark. This is his memoir in which he describes how Denmark has slowly lost it's vibrancy as the local hospital is closed and the infrastructure crumbles. This is very much a memoir written by a politician with an eye to winning elections. There's more than a hint of hagiography in Sellers's account of his own life and experiences. But when his focus turns from himself, the memoir comes to life, and the best chapter by far is his account of the Orangeburg Massacre and his father's story. This is also a deep dive into politics specific to South Carolina and to Black culture in The Palmetto State, which may be of limited interest to people less interested in local politics or the history of South Carolina.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      I enjoyed learning more about Bakari Sellers. This is a smart young man with a good heart. I know he will accomplish a lot in his life. What I did not like was the foul language he used. I don't understand why young people today think it is ok to use ugly language. The English language is so full of excellent words to describe any situation and emotion, I completely understand his frustration with America today regarding racism and cast, but he would make a better role model for young folks if he can relay his feelings and emotions without using foul language. That being said, I do thank you Bakari for your story and for enlightening me on the Orangeburg Massacre. I am ashamed to say that I don't remember ever hearing about it. Shocking.