A version for Young Adults is also available.Super Bowl Champion and two-time Pro Bowler Michael Bennett is an outspoken proponent for social justice and a man without a censor. One of the most scathingly humorous athletes on the planet, he is also a fearless activist, grassroots philanthropist, and organizer.
Written with award-winning sportswriter and author Dave Zirin, Things That Make White … Things That Make White People Uncomfortable is a sports book for our times, a sports memoir and manifesto as hilarious as it is revealing.
Bennett, a defensive end for the Seattle Seahawks, has gained international recognition for his public support for the Black Lives Matter Movement and women’s rights. Bennett donates all his endorsement money and half of the proceeds from his jersey sales to fund health and education projects for poor underserved youth and minority communities, and has recently expanded his reach globally to provide STEM programming in Africa.
Dave Zirin has been called the “finest, most important writer on sports and politics in America,” by Dr. Cornel West, Professor of the Practice of Public Philosophy at the Harvard Divinity School. He is sports editor for The Nation and author of several titles for Haymarket Books, including his critically acclaimed book The John Carlos Story, written with 1968 Olympian John Carlos.
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This book was truth. Micheal Bennett is a bright and soulful man. Signed, one white person.
My son is a huge Seattle Seahawks fan. Knowing I was very interested in the Black Lives Matter movement and social justice, he told me he heard this book was coming out in 2018. I happened to be at Barnes & Noble one night and went looking for it on a whim. I grabbed the hardback and a coffee, sat down in the Starbucks café, and started reading. Martellus Bennett’s prologue grabbed me. Chapter one hooked me. I bought the book that night, brought it home, and it sat on my shelf for two years until now. I regret not reading it sooner, but maybe it was fate telling me that now was the perfect time to pick it up.
I’ll be straight up. I used to LOVE pro football, but aside from a mild interest in Super Bowl commercials, I haven’t watched it in years. But that didn’t matter when I started reading. Michael Bennett established an easy dialogue in chapter one and kept me rapt until the end with every word. I had no idea who this guy was, but I knew one thing: I LOVED HIM.
Michael Bennett is a self-proclaimed feminist. He’s a social justice warrior. He cares about people. He wants kids—especially economically disadvantaged kids—to eat better so they can grow up to be healthy adults. He’s the kind of man I’d like to be friends with.
I wrote gobs of notes on Post-Its while reading about Michael’s childhood in Louisiana, his parents’ split and the fracture it caused between his siblings, his adventures in college football at Texas A & M with his brother Martellus, having a child with his Hawaiian girlfriend (now wife) Pele while still in college, his NFL draft snub, and his rise to the top after overcoming countless challenges. It was a truly fascinating story, and I rooted from him at every turn.
One line from this book stuck out from the rest. I clung to it because I hear SO MANY WHITE PEOPLE complaining right now about how unfair it is to remove Confederate monuments:
“Of course there’s racism in Seattle. But in Texas, it’s right in your face. You’re hearing about people getting hanged. You’re seeing the KKK. There are Confederate monuments to people who owned your great-grandparents that you have to walk by every day.” (p. 10, hardback edition)
That last sentence hit me hard. Imagine going to work or school every day and having to pass a giant stone THANK-YOU! to a person who literally owned your great-grandparents. If that’s not enough of a reason to bring these monuments down, I don’t know what is. Bennett further discussed his feelings about the Confederate monuments (and use of the N-word—more on that below) on page 131 when the mayor of New Orleans announced he was going to remove Confederate statues:
“I saw those young white men, marching at night with torches to keep these monuments up. I want to say to them that just because it’s history doesn’t make it right. Those monuments stand on top of the blood and backs and genocide of a people. I question whether for them it’s really about their history or an excuse to express their hate. We can’t be scared. We can’t go back. Let’s tear these monuments down, along with the word that gives them life. To me this is what Black Lives Matter is all about—a movement to claim our humanity in a country that would deny it.”
I couldn’t agree more.
“[T]here is a bloody fight to take down monuments to slavers who fought the Civil War to keep my people in chains. They are held up as heroes. There are three times as many monuments to Confederates in the US Capitol Building as there are Black elected officials. If we mattered to this country, how would that even be possible?” (p. 145)
I believe white people in this country need to reevaluate where they stand, and now is the moment of truth. If we truly believe in equal rights for all, we have to stop talking and start listening to people like Michael Bennett.
Bennett also talked about the duality of being a college football star to fans at Texas A & M. “I was half god, half property. But whichever half they were dealing with, I was never fully human.” (p. 32) Later he spoke of what it was like at the NFL combine where he was poked and prodded in his underwear. He said he felt like a piece of meat and “it reminded [him] of descriptions [he’d] read of slave auctions.” (p. 41) I watched the NFL draft a few years ago and got the same kind of vibe, and that didn’t even feature these men in their underwear as the combine does. It’s gross. Really gross.
But Bennett also shared good stuff in the NFL. He spoke of the camaraderie he shared with his teammates and how they came together, across racial divides, to become not only better football players, but also better humans. I love that—seeing the side of these folks we don’t normally see.
There is an entire chapter devoted to use of the N-word by both white and Black people:
“Why? Why are you guys using that word? Especially when you have white teammates around, hearing that word get normalized, taking away its sting … It needs to stop. A lot of people have lost their lives because of that word, whether we’re talking about lynchings or Black people killing other Black people.” (p. 125)
I’m a white woman, so it’s not my place to determine what words Black people should or shouldn’t say to each other, but I appreciated Bennett’s perspective on the topic.
Bennett included many resources and recommended books for white people to read, which I’ve already purchased and/or added to my TBR lists. I’m looking forward to digging in to those soon.
THINGS THAT MAKE WHITE PEOPLE UNCOMFORTABLE is a must-read book for everyone, not just white people. I truly enjoyed learning about Mr. Bennett and learning from him as well. He was a great teacher!
I always need more key words for non fiction that is offered. This was funny and irreverent and yet also deeply heartfelt and serious. If you are also a football fan (I am) it will make you think.
Michael is an awesome guy. I am white and did not feel uncomfortable. Just informed and enlightened. I am a fan!
I wish there had been a different title. It’s a little misleading. I will say this: Mr. Bennett educates us all as to the importance and meaningfulness of the Black Lives Matter Movement. This is a great and engaging and challenging book!
Here is a man of great character who isn’t afraid to take a stand. He does a lot to help others as well. We all could learn from him.
Mr. Bennett seems incognizant of his success being born of the accident of genetics. His uncommon size and strength awarded him a college education. That opportunity appears to have been squandered, at least when it comes to writing articulate, supportable prose. This is a flailing attempt at making an argument. An attempt for all future Aggie students to use as an example of how NOT to write persuasively. I love to see athletes strive to be scholars. I hate to see them demonstrate that they only have a single pony to ride, that of their physical gifts.
This book is exceptional in that it feels as if Michael Bennett is speaking directly to the reader and from his heart. What he has to say is so very important for anyone, and in particular us “white people” to hear. Your time will be well spent with this book and I’m not even a football fan.
Especially interesting for football fans.
This book was very informative through easy but, receptive dialogue.
Everyone should do themselves a favor and read this book….