There’s a new book out that’s causing quite a stir among Black women!
Although I doubt most sisters have the courage to read, The Denzel Principle: Why Black Women Can’t Find a Good Black Man by Jimi Izrael, because the brother lays down the truth.
A Review by Felix Bolt:
I recently stepped in to my neighborhood library to see if a book that I had on reserve had arrived. As I stood in line to chat with the attractive young bookworm at the Reference Desk, I noticed a book with picture of Denzel Washington on the cover called, “The Denzel Principle – Why Black Men Can’t Find Good Black Men.” As it turns out, my book was not there but since there was no one else in line, I decided to ask Ms. Bookworm, if she had read this book. She said that she had skimmed through it but that it didn’t really hold her attention. Now I had never heard of Jimi Izrael but what the hell, there’s a lotta stuff that I’ve never heard of so I decided to check it out, if for the title alone.
In the interests of full disclosure, I’m a bit of an urban myth. I am a black man, married to the same black woman for twenty-three years with two teen-aged sons, both with my wife and both born after we were married. I’m a very traditional guy, kinda old-fashion- ed, if you will, and I am always interested in the tug-of-war that is black male/female relationships.
This brings us to one Jimi Izrael and his book which from the title, I expected to be the usual diatribe about the shortage of black men complete with the now well-known laundry list of the usual reasons why. Well, this is why you don’t judge a book by its cover! What Mr. Izrael provides here is Real Talk. Real Talk that every black woman that says that she wants a man needs to hear. Mr. Izrael dismisses out of hand the notion that black men are the sole reason for the pathologies that affect the black community or that black men as a whole need to be rehabilitated. If anything, the black man may need to hire a new PR firm because the firm of Sister It’s All His Fault LLC, ain’t reppin’ us right! What Mr. Izrael argues is that feminism be damned, the black man needs to re-claim his masculine mind and re-take his rightful place as head of his family. Izrael points out, that feminism has had some unintended consequences, one of which is the destruction of the black family and by extension, the black community. This makes for interesting reading at a time when traditional ideas of manhood are under attack from all quarters. Even more interesting when you realize that the feminization of men in this country is so prevalent that all men, black and white, that proudly wear their machismo as a badge of honor are painted as Neanderthals, scraping their knuckles on the ground as they grab the woman of their desire by the hair. Well, I guess I’ll just have to be that.
Politically, I’m not sure whether Mr. Izrael identifies himself as a conservative or not but much of his book deals with personal responsibility, morals and family values; thinking that is certainly a throwback to a time when the black community appeared to be headed in the right direction. I only hope that when I return this book to the library, it will find its way into the hands (and hearts and minds) of the black women that really need to read this. Maybe Denzel’s picture on the cover will help.
The Last Tradition
