How to sum up bell hooks in under 5 words: not a good writer. She constantly writes that class is the biggest issue of all, which she then contradicts by constantly mentioning the importance of race and money. Worst of all, she repeats the same things over and over to no affect besides being annoying. With some editing, and a less muddled, contradictory thesis/outline, this could have been a good book. But with all of the generalizations and assumptions - on top of everything else I just mentioned - "Where We Stand" is a failure. I'm actually very surprised with all of the positive reviews this book has been given.

hooks, if she had things her way, would make the USA a communist country. Yes there are 38 million people living in poverty, but the population has doubled to 6 billion since 1960 (when the world population was only 3 billion) - much thanks to families, like hooks', who have too many kids (7 in hooks' case). Earth has finite land and resources - when the population goes up so much, it's no wonder there are so many homeless people. Not enough room for everyone, unless you want to completely obliterate the environment or build millions of 40- 50- or 60-story apartment complexes everywhere. On top of that, millions and MILLIONS - 38 million according to hooks - of jobs need to be created.

If hooks truly believes that the poor aren't lazy, then why is it that illegal immigrants find it so easy to find jobs all over the county?(It could be about race, but I don't know many Americans who really like illegal immigrants, at least not as much/more than any other minorities.) If a low-wage job is available, I would take it (if I were poor) if it meant keeping me off the streets. Yet our country - ahem, liberals - are supporting illegal immigrants. I'm not Xenophobic, I'm not anti-Mexican, anti-immigration, or racist. I wish everyone the best. But when people in our own country can't even find a place to live, why is it that we're trying to protect the rights of illegals?

I could go on and on about all of the things hooks refuses to acknowledge. She's blaming "us" for looking the other way, while she's doing the exact same thing on many issues. Does she really expect everyone to be as narrow-minded as she is? There are too many problems in our country alone, let alone the entire world, making it difficult to instantly solve this problem. Think about it: billions of people on an overpopulated planet.... not going to get results very quick, especially not with the "make everyone feel guilty" approach that hooks uses in her book. I do believe that class is an issue, but it's not the only one - unfortunately, hooks doesn't really address that.

I finally decided to come to terms with how class affects the decisions I make and that people make on my behalf. bell hooks is a rigorous thinker who questions assumptions,especially her own. I liked the blend of experience and academic evidence she uses in the essays. Thinking about class raises a lot of emotion, especially shame, and having an intellectual basis for processing it helps. An excellent place to start.

I'm always interested in what bell hooks has to say, but this is one of her best. We hear more these days about the increasing class divide in America, and bell speaks clearly to the cultural issues and access to political power of the working classes, especially when those poorer people are of ethnic groups and when they are women.

Where We Stand: Class Matters by bell hooks


All books written by bell hooks are powerful, direct, and very brave. Exactly when I was hoping bell would write a book about class, I discovered this one. Her writings about love lead to exploration of capitalism and its social structure more in depth, to strengthen points about the ways class loyalties and antagonisms prevent love ethic from becoming embraced by the society as a whole.

What I especially appreciate in Where We Stand are the two quite extraordinary qualities: a) bell showed us that we can talk and write about class without using "post-modern" or difficult to comprehend terminology, and b) she is not afraid to call to action, to change this depressing and unjust, cruel and senseless system into "a world where we can all have enough to live fully and well."

She started the book with self-critique, almost apologizing for not having enough theoretical knowledge to talk about class issues. However, bell is able to discuss very different aspects of class, such as class ideology (or the dominant social ideology being the ideology of the ruling class), class consciousness of the working class and intellectuals, intersections of class, race and gender, crossing class boundaries, and a vision of a classless society--society--without class hierarchies or antagonistic classes.

I read somewhere that some book reviews called this book a "novel". Where We Stand is not a novel, but I prefer to see this as compliment. bell masterfully intertwined her personal experiences and her family stories into the general discussion about class. Her feminist methodology brings much needed approach and analysis of one indivisible social system that is at the same time patriarchal, capitalist/imperialist, and white supremacist on a global scale.

bell hooks is always brave and principled. Her integrity is intact as she writes about the most important issues of our time. In addition, we can witness that she lives according to her values. She is compassionate and openly declares her solidarity with the working class and all of the people that Marx called proletariat. bell chose to live on a smaller income, without security that institutions provide, and to live simply.
Not only are the topics that bell writes about revolutionary, but she herself lives as an intellectual capable of leading a revolutionary movement.

I expect some critics to say that all aspects of class are not explored in this book, nor are those discussed explored in depth. Some will be tempted to say that bell is using Marx's concepts and creating relatively new terminology, as would many say that Anthony Giddens (Capitalism and Modern Social Theory; Class, Power and Conflict) is very much influenced by Marx. I understand that this book is only her first step, an introduction to a number of explorations of class issues in the contemporary American society, as well as one of her first calls for unity and strong advocacy for abolition of class and all other hierarchies.

Considering much of hooks' social theory, I see most parallels with Erich Fromm's work. Fromm wrote about "productive love" and "productive work", but he was also a very sharp critic of capitalism, exploitation, and alienation from our basic human needs, arguing for "productive humanistic communitarian socialism". Very much influenced by Marx, Fromm's theory of class also focuses on raising individual, group, and social conciseness in order to change the society into a future form that would allow us "to be" instead of "to have" and fulfill our basic human needs.

In terms of style, bell's way of writing resembles Joanna Kadi's Thinking Class who reaffirmed that working class members of our society are among best thinkers and most important agents of social change.

I started reading this book shortly before Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast and news clips began pouring in from New Orleans. More clearly than ever, I understood the need for books like Where We Stand to encourage us to think about issues of class in America and then take action in our own lives.

I read bell hooks because she challenges the notions I have from my white supremacist, patriarchal, capitalist upbringing. Where We Stand continues in this tradition. While reflecting upon the events of her own life and her own actions, hooks is able to examine our culture while inviting us increase awareness of how issues of class impact our own lives. For example, while critically examining the influence of materialism in our society, hooks offers her own personal experience with owning a BMW and how her attitude toward the vehicle subtly affected her relationships with other people.

Anyone willing to examine how class, race, gender, and consumerism all collide will want to read this book.