This is Not America

A TIMES AND SPECTATOR BOOK OF THE YEAR'[Owolade's] argument has needed saying for years' Janan Ganesh, Financial Times'Compelling and admirable' Sunday Times'Passionate and timely' Observer'Excellent' Telegraph'Illuminating' The Times'Timely [and] engaging' GuardianAcross the West, racial injustice has become one of the most divisive issues of our age. In the rush to address inequality and prejudice, and to understand concerns around identity, immigration and colonial history, Britain has followed the lead of the world's dominant power: America. We judge ourselves by America's standards, absorb its arguments and follow its agenda. But what if we're looking in the wrong place?This is Not America is built on the idea that black Britons are British first and foremost, and thus are likely to have more in common with other Britons than with black people in other parts of the world. It argues that too much of the conversation around race in Britain today is viewed through the prism of American ideas that don't reflect the history, challenges and achievements of increasingly diverse black populations at home. To build a long-lasting and more effective anti-racist agenda we must acknowledge that crucial differences exist between Britain and America, and that we are talking about distinct communities and cultures, distinguished by language, history, class, religion and national origin. Humane, empirical and passionate, this book provides a bold new framework for understanding race in Britain today.

Excellent... This is Not America lands us in that complex area called humanity, which, Owolade argues, is the best place for us to forge common goals -- Tony Sewell Telegraph
Passionate and timely... [Owolade] concludes: 'To define someone exclusively by their race is to acquiesce to the visions of racists.' Amen to that. -- Colin Grant Observer
The most interesting meditation on what it means to be black in the modern world in 25 years. Sir Trevor Phillips
[Owolade's] argument has needed saying for years... the book deserves to succeed Janan Ganesh, Financial Times
Persuasive and insightful... [Owolade's] manifesto for a black British identity, one that sees the two identities as 'indivisible' rather than opposed, is compelling and admirable, as is his love of his Britishness Sunday Times
Owolade's book is a timely exploration of difficult questions. Proudly unorthodox, sometimes provocative, it has the merit of being engaging even when it enrages. -- S. I. Martin Guardian
Packed with illuminating statistics and potted biographies, This Is Not America is an espresso of a book - a short and stimulating affair that will leave you feeling smarter The Times
Wide-ranging... [Owolade's] intent is to engender a form of antiracism that is UK-specific, thus more truthful and useful New Statesman
A brave argument Michela Wrong, Spectator
Owolade draws on his personal experiences and those of others to craft a nuanced, compassionate and surprisingly optimistic view of race relations in Britain. Irish Times
An erudite book, full of clear, courageous, common-sense observations about the different histories and patterns of racism that divide Britain and the US Jewish Chronicle
Impressive... a resounding appeal for openness, intelligence, imagination and common sense in the discussion of racial difference in our society The Tablet
An outstanding achievement... This is Not America is a deeply researched, passionately argued and original contribution to one of the most important debates in modern Britain. I admired it immensely. -- Dr Amanda Foreman, author of The Duchess
Tomiwa Owolade has achieved the near impossible feat of bringing much needed reason, nuance and balance to the super charged debate about race and racism that has migrated from America to Britain and many other European democracies. -- Jacob Mchangama, author of Free Speech
Subtle, subversive and compassionate, this is a book not just for black Britons but for all Britons interested in the evolving character of our national identity, and who want to feel optimistic about it. -- Tom Holland, author of Rubicon
A brave and utterly engrossing book. Nuanced, fair-minded and thoughtful... This is Not America is essential reading for anyone interested in some of the most contentious issues of our time -- Ian Buruma, author of Year Zero
Tomiwa Owolade navigates questions of race and identity in British politics with a rare combination of subtlety, clarity and moral urgency. Powered by historical scholarship, This is Not America steers a course of cool intellectual rigour through a debate that is too often polarised and polemical -- Rafael Behr, author of Politics: A Survivor's Guide
Eloquent and insightful -- Dr Remi Adekoya, author of Biracial Britain
A calm and insightful voice in an often overheated debate. -- Kenan Malik, author of The Quest for a Moral Compass
This is Not America is not only indispensable writing and indispensable thinking - it is essential to working out who we are in Britain today -- Ben Judah, author of This is London
Few books truly deserve to be called 'necessary' but This is Not America is one of them. -- Ian Leslie, author of How to Disagree
Weaves elegantly through statistics, literary narratives and personal stories to reveal the radically different social and cultural contexts of the two countries with regard to race... [and] forms part of the urgent and long-awaited intellectual work needed to create a genuinely fair and socially just society The Critic
Owolade tells an optimistic story of racial progress... Thinkers like these [Owolade] are poised to dramatically alter a conversation that has hitherto been dominated by a narrow cadre of white progressive elites and minority radicals. Literary Review
Well informed, nuanced and balanced, Tomiwa Owolade is the optimistic future of Britain's race debate -- David Goodhart, author of The Road to Somewhere

Tomiwa Owolade writes about social, cultural and literary issues for the New Statesman, The Times, the Sunday Times, the Observer, UnHerd and the Evening Standard. He has appeared on BBC Radio 4 and Times Radio discussing some of the ideas in this book. He won top prize at the RSL Giles St Aubyn Awards 2021.

This item is eligible for free returns within 30 days of delivery. See our returns policy for further details.