We Were Eight Years in Power // An American Tragedy

We were eight years in power was the lament of Reconstruction-era Black politicians as the American experiment in multiracial democracy ended with the return of white supremacist rule in the South. In this sweeping collection of new and selected essays, Ta-Nehisi Coates explores the tragic echoes of that history in our own time: the unprecedented election of a Black president followed by a vicious backlash that fueled the election of the man Coates argues is Americas first white president.

But the story of these present-day eight years is not just about presidential politics. This book also examines the new voices, ideas, and movements for justice that emerged over this periodand the effects of the persistent, haunting shadow of our nations old and unreconciled history. Coates powerfully examines the events of the Obama era from his intimate and revealing perspectivethe point of view of a young writer who begins the journey in an unemployment office in Harlem and ends it in the Oval Office, interviewing a president.

We Were Eight Years in Powerfeatures Coatess iconic essays first published inThe Atlantic,including Fear of a Black President, The Case for Reparations, and The Black Family in the Age of Mass Incarceration, along with eight fresh essays that revisit each year of the Obama administration through Coatess own experiences, observations, and intellectual development, capped by a bracingly original assessment of the election that fully illuminated the tragedy of the Obama era.We Were Eight Years in Poweris a vital account of modern America, from one of the definitive voices of this historic moment.

• We Were8 Years in Power: An American Tragedy by Ta-Nehisi Coates
• Paperback:400 pages
• Publisher:One World; Reprint edition (October 30, 2018)
• Language:English
• ISBN-10:0399590579
• ISBN-13:9780399590573
• Product Dimensions:5.2 x 0.8 x 7.9 inches
• Shipping Weight:14.4 ounces