In this post: The tale of two America through the memoirs of two men of the same name. I'm willing to bet you see yourself in one of them, if not both.
Category: Black in America
Ramiah Recommended?
Yes. C'mon, just look at that tagline and subtitle!
As you may have guessed, The Other Wes Moore is centered around two men who have the same name: Wes Moore. One Wes is imprisoned for life and interviewed for this book, the other Wes is the author and interviewer. The imprisoned Wes had an early life involved in crime, the author Wes - despite growing up in the same Baltimore neighborhood as the imprisoned Wes - went on to become a decorated veteran and Rhodes scholar. One of the aims of the book is to discuss how both Wes' ended where they are and how others can possibly learn from their paths.
The Other Wes Moore gives color to all the main themes The New Jim Crow (read my review of that here) covers, especially concerning the imprisonment of Black males and how that affects family dynamics. For that reason, definitely pair The Other Wes Moore with The New Jim Crow - both Moores' stories are a few of the many manifestations of all the statistics Michelle Alexander throws at readers in Jim Crow.
The value of this book is its story. Readers are engrossed in both Wes' past, present, and future. From the moment we learn of their childhoods, to where their paths diverge, to their current endeavors, we get to understand how each Wes' environment, ambitions, and even family dynamics (or lack thereof) help shape these men.
I read much of this book with a book club, and in it, we struggled with how to reference each Wes. "Blessed and unblessed" Wes, "Fortunate and unfortunate Wes", and more were used, and I found myself using them too to differentiate the Wes's when speaking. However, as I continued to read the book, which is divided into 3 parts, it didn't feel right to distinguish the Wes' by who was deemed successful and who was not. Particularly, Part 2 ("Choices and Second Chances)" shares many values the imprisoned Wes has learned during his life, but mostly in incarceration - the value of second chances, for example, and how he would have done things differently if he had a stronger model to follow. Both Wes' are who they are because of their life experiences, and while the imprisoned Wes may not be considered successful by life achievement standards or levels of prestige as the author Wes would, imprisoned Wes is successful in areas of personal growth, ownership of actions, and personal accountability. I resolved to refer to the Wes' by who they were in the book: an interviewer and an interviewee.
Another reason I couldn't stand comfortably in calling one Wes 'lucky' and another 'unlucky' is that I saw myself in both Wes'. Interviewer Wes shared how he struggled to fit in at his private high school with its affluent students: "When the kids would talk about the new videogame system that was out or how their family was going to Greece or Spain or France during summer vacation, I would sit silent, hoping they wouldn't ask me where my family planned on 'summering'" (page 53). This is almost verbatim my experience at the private, Catholic, all-girls high school I attended. While my peers were talking about their annual international trips to Mexico or London for the holidays, I remembered I hadn't even traveled outside the country by that point, let alone to 3 other states in the country.
When Interviewee Wes felt lost, and even angry, in trying to navigate his future because he lacked role models who could guide him through their experience, I remembered how I was overwhelmed when applying to colleges. As a first-generation college student, I was a deer in headlights when trying to study for the SAT, write my personal statement, and fill out FAFSA. My family pushed me to go to college ("not going isn't an option"), but couldn't provide me with the answers I needed so, until I searched elsewhere. Interviewee Wes' brother, Tony, scolded Interviewee Wes for showing interest in dealing drugs and admonished him to stay in school, yet Tony dropped out of school to control drug corners and was living in contradiction of the advice he gave. Tony wasn't leading an example for Interviewee Wes to follow.
Even though my life experiences - upbringing, obstacles, or reality - are nothing similar to either Wes Moores, I could identify myself in their stories and struggle. I think any reader can. And that's what makes their story so important, gripping, and compelling.
This being said, the way the story is told at times can leave more to be desired.
At times, the narrative can give too much exposition. If you're like me, my dear Reminder, then you like to make your own inferences and conclusions. That's a hard reader freedom to find in The Other Wes Moore. For example, when Interviewee Wes is assaulted by his (not quite) girlfriend's 'cousin', we get a lot of detail about their fight that ends in a gun shootout. We read that Interviewee Wes is visibly hurt, having taken many blows from the cousin, who we later find out was the not-quite-girlfriend's actual boyfriend. After the fight, we read this:
"Wes ran by her and, without even looking back, told her nothing was wrong and to go to bed. The blood on Wes's face and clothes, and the weapon in his hand, told a very different story."
*gasps* You mean, Interviewee Wes isn't unscathed after getting beat up then seeking revenge by starting a gunfight? nO wAy!!
Don't get me wrong, this is one of the few instances where Interviewer Wes' narrative of Interviewee Wes' life falls short. If Interviewer Wes followed the same approach to this scene as he did with his own altercation (when he was in military school, see page 125) in which we learn who the assailant is at the end of the drama, that would've been a great way to keep readers on their toes when we're following Interviewee Wes as he learns the true identity of the 'cousin'.
Overall, The Other Wes Moore is a great account of how two men answered the ever-present question: what do you do when the odds are stacked against you? Do you yield or do you resist? In this case, when there is a lack of equal opportunity to academic and professional gateways that can increase one's socioeconomic standing in society, how can the odds land?
The Other Wes Moore does an excellent job in acknowledging and highlighting the environmental factors that influence ones ability to beat the odds - the financial sacrifices of Interviewer Wes' mom to ensure he could attend the private school, the lack of role models outside of crime and employment opportunities that could generate the same wealth as drug dealing for Interviewee Wes. Even these are oversimplifications of how each Wes were led to respond to the cards they were dealt in the ways they did. It was an amalgamation of internal (including their own actions) and external factors.
Whether you focus on the impacts of poverty and crime of a neighborhood on its inhabitants, the impacts of not having a father in the household, how greed can influence an individual's actions - all of which are topics the Interviewer Wes Moore surfaces throughout the book - one thing very clear: add this book on your to-read list. You're sure to find a theme that keeps you turning the pages.
Ramiah Reflects
My New Favorite Life Quotes:
"I looked up at the vast canopy of blue above, then took a deep breath, feeling the fresh air race through me. For the first time in a long time I was reminded of the daily miracle of my freedom, the ability to move, explore, meet new people, or simply enjoy the sun beating down on my face. " - [Interviewer] Wes Moore
"The expectations that others place on us help us form our expectations of ourselves." - [Interviewee] Wes Moore
"Fighting for your convictions is important. But finding peace is paramount. Knowing when to fight and when to seek peace is wisdom." - [Interviewer] Wes Moore
Questions to Ask Yourself (and answer!):
On page 20, Interviewer Wes shares he felt like he lived in a bubble while a student at Johns Hopkins University: "It was a school largely for people from out of town, preppies who observed the surrounding neighborhood with a voyeuristic curiosity when they weren't hatching myths about it to scare freshmen". I felt like this at USC, except I was (admittedly) the out-of-town preppy in this case, until I was impassioned to become part of the community. Have you ever felt you lived inside a bubble, away from reality because of your environment? If not, have you identified other people's bubbles?
On page 126, after being assaulted in his military uniform by the son of one of his military commanders, Interviewer Wes shares: What do our clothes say about how we expect/want to be treated? Do we wear certain clothes because we expect respect, as Wes did here? Do clothes offer protection?
As mentioned in "Ramiah Recommended?", this book tackles well the topic of how it feels when one's destiny is limited to their environment. Have you ever experienced this sense of hopelessness? Did you yield or resist?
Food for Thought:
Page 58: "All he really wanted to do was either play football professionally or become a rapper," this is another example of how Interviewee Wes felt limited in his career opportunities before he ultimately decided to sell drugs. When looking at media portrayals of Black men professionally, or even looking at the careers in which Black men are the majority, athlete and rapper are the top two professions. Why is that, and what message are we sending to our Black men and boys about who they can be in the world?
On pages 67 and 68, Interviewee Wes wrestles with the hypocriticism in his family - being told to do better without an example of how to do so: "Tony was the closest thing Wes had to a role model. But the more he tried to be like his brother, the more his brother rejected him. The more he copied him, the more Tony pushed back. Wes wanted to be just like Tony. Tony wanted Wes to be nothing like him." Unfortunately, Tony's fears of what Wes' reality may look like became a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Pg 135: Yet another musing from Interviewer Wes's assault while in his military uniform - what kind of discrimination exists in the military? Interviewer Wes did not feel comfortable seeking remedy or punishment for the assailant, not only because the assailant was a minor, but also because of the close ties of the assailant with Interviewer Wes's superior and the likelihood of nepotism in favor of the assailant. Interviewer Wes shared "This was not a fair fight, and the best-case scenario was nowhere near as probable as the worst-case scenario." This made me think of Isaac Ford Jr.'s experience (from Up From the Bottom, read my review of that here) in military and law enforcement; these are old, traditional institutions rife with values that mirror the dates in which they were established. Perhaps restructuring is overdue.
Ramiah's Re-read When
Re-read when:
You want insight on how you may respond to the cards you were dealt
You want to recall the very personal realities of impersonal data points on the incarceration of Black men, or racial wealth/opportunity gap statistics
You just want a good, non-fictional story
See below for my book notes:
Check out my other posts and book notes here.
Until next time!
Montana Houston
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