John McWhorter — Authentically Black

In this episode of The Glenn Show, I’m back with my friend John McWhorter, and we have much to discuss. John joins me fresh from a day trip to Brighton Beach, a neighborhood in Brooklyn where Russian language, food, and culture abound. He talks about teaching himself Russian and the benefits of the Glossika language-learning tool. Then, in a continuation of last week’s conversation with David Kaiser, we move on to the history of redlining, which is quite a bit more complex than some recent commentaries would have you believe. A recent edition of John’s New York Times newsletter addressed the issue, and it received some criticism from the distinguished historian Thomas Sugrue. This leads us to discuss the problems of authority and perception that attend writing from the Olympian heights of the paper of record. From there, I give a progress report on my memoir, delving into my life, my break from conservatism in the ‘90s, and the difficulty of living in good faith. The temptation to “play to the crowd,” to seek affirmation by repeating the common sense of your tribe, is very powerful, and it can work on you in subtle ways. Heterodox thinkers like John and I have to check ourselves constantly to make sure we’re being true to our own thought and principles. In that spirit, we end on a question that’s sure to ruffle some feathers here at my Substack: How can we start seriously addressing questions about “systemic racism” and stop simply disregarding them as just so much wokespeak? As always, I’m curious to hear your thoughts! A New Home for TGSThe video for this episode is hosted on my new YouTube channel, which is now the home of The Glenn Show. I invite you to subscribe to this channel (and click the bell button!) now so that you don't miss future offerings. This newsletter will continue to publish as usual with the same benefits for subscribers.This post is free and available to the public. To receive early access to TGS episodes, Q&As, and other exclusive content and benefits, click below.0:00 John's linguistic adventure in Brighton Beach 7:59 The complex racial and economic dynamics of redlining 17:30 The problem with John's NYT “megaphone” 26:40 A progress report on Glenn's memoir 41:29 The temptations of playing to the crowd 46:43 What, if anything, does it mean to be “authentically black”? 51:13 Taking "systemic racism" seriouslyLinks and ReadingsThe language-learning tool GlossikaJohn’s column about GlossikaJohn’s piece about redliningGlenn’s conversation with historian David E. KaiserThomas Sugrue’s Twitter thread about John’s redlining pieceJohn’s book, Authentically Black: Essays for the Black Silent Majority This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe