The Fire This Time

Like many of the writers in this anthology, Daniel José Older calls readers to speak out against contemporary racial injustice. The freedom promised to Americans at the inception of this country has been denied to people of color again and again. As Older writes, the “demand that black lives matter laid bare the twin lies of American equality and exceptionalism. Even on the left, even in this age of exposed racial rifts, politicians still say with a straight face that this country was founded on principles of equality” (200-01). To confront this disparity between ideal and execution, Older joined protests in New York City after the death of Michael Brown. He also followed the words of a quote from the poet Nizar Qabbani, who writes, “Our deliverance is in drawing with words” (198). Older writes this essay—and continues to write—to discover, to grieve, and to speak out against injustice.  

Older anchors his thoughts on this modern revolution with a quote from James Baldwin, the writer whose work also inspired the anthology: “This far and no further” (200). This quote, in addition to the other beloved quotes Older includes, puts language to the mechanisms of protest. An unconventional revolution, resisting the institutional powers that repress black life, kindled across the United States through personal relationships and the Internet. Older, along with the other writers in The Fire This Time, participate in a history-making movement through marching and speaking out in what he calls “a collective howl […]” (202). 

For Older himself, as well as Natassian, this revolution occurs in private as well. Older writes:

Every journey is a crisis, a turning point, a shedding of myths, and mine began with the gnawing certainty that something did not add up. And in a way, this journey never ends, but in another sense, it ends where all great roads lead: to the discovery of voice. (202)

Reckoning with racial inequality in America challenged his view not only of the country but of himself. However, in this process of undoing, he found a way to use language in new, powerful ways. 

The essay, he admits, is still difficult to write. With heartbreak he surveys the landscape of Kingston, Jamaica; the climate in Ferguson; the protests in New York; and the deaths of African Americans like Sandra Bland. A white police officer pulled over the 28-year-old Bland, who was driving in Prairie View, Texas, and accused her of failing to signal. After a confrontation, he took Bland into custody, and she died in jail three days later in an apparent suicide.

Older draws strength from his partner Natassian. She wants him to write the piece for the children they would have together. Natassian counsels Older: “Tell them how their mother landed on hope amidst all the despair, you told me weeks later when I said I didn’t know how to write this essay” (203-04). He uses his voice for Natassian, who also experiences what Older calls “your own revolution” (204) after she questions living in the United States for its treatment of black citizens. He depicts them going through customs and security at the airport and how, despite that dehumanizing process, Natassian expresses hope about living in America.