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ezreaadingo's review against another edition
4.0
This is a great book that goes through real-life examples of how the ‘savior mentality’ shows ip in many different ways in our culture and how engrained it is in our country’s DNA. The only piece missing (and maybe it’s not intended in this book) is more concrete ideas/strategies to avoid and/or break away from the savior mentality. However, I highly recommend this book for anyone with privilege who wants to be a part of any movements for social change!
cebolla's review against another edition
5.0
I was expecting this to be another book about the movement written by an over-analyzing intellectual who has never seen the front lines of anything. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised to find a thoughtful series of essays written by an activist with actual life experience. Flaherty has published a number of books and articles, was the first reporter to bring the Jena Six case to a national audience, and is the only journalist identified as a subject in the NYPD's spying programs. It's obvious from his writing that he has more at stake than just the prospect of a nice paycheck.
No More Heroes, using many examples from around the world, breaks down and dissects the savior mentality, a problem committed disproportionately, or almost exclusively, by white people in activist communities. Flaherty drives home the point that white people, when joining a cause, need to learn how to be a part of something and take our cues from people whose lives are being directly affected, without the declawing that comes with white guilt. As he says it: “The prototypical savior is a person who has been raised in privilege and taught implicity or explicitly (or both) that they possess the answers and skills needed to rescue others, no matter the situation.”
Brandon Darby in New Orleans is used as one of the multiple, concrete examples of the white savior complex. Darby is someone who wasn't from New Orleans, but went to help after Katrina. Although providing necessary resources, he thought he was there to teach people who had grown up in the struggle how to get shit done. He was made such a hero by his fellow white people that the allegations of him sexually assaulting multiple women were able to be swept under the rug.
Among the many other examples, the one that stands out the most to me is when Mario Van Peebles was attempting to make the movie “Panther.” He was told by studio executive after studio executive that he needed a white lead. One exec even suggested that he focus on a white person who would meet some black youth and teach them to stand up for themselves. These men would later become the Black Panthers. The importance of having a white lead (even if the main character was a person of color in real life) plays right into creating and maintaining the white savior complex.
The last few essays focused more on what white people can do to be good accomplices. The main idea I drew from this portion of the book is that “Support means using whatever privilege and access you have to influence the systems that have power over the lives of others.”
No More Heroes, using many examples from around the world, breaks down and dissects the savior mentality, a problem committed disproportionately, or almost exclusively, by white people in activist communities. Flaherty drives home the point that white people, when joining a cause, need to learn how to be a part of something and take our cues from people whose lives are being directly affected, without the declawing that comes with white guilt. As he says it: “The prototypical savior is a person who has been raised in privilege and taught implicity or explicitly (or both) that they possess the answers and skills needed to rescue others, no matter the situation.”
Brandon Darby in New Orleans is used as one of the multiple, concrete examples of the white savior complex. Darby is someone who wasn't from New Orleans, but went to help after Katrina. Although providing necessary resources, he thought he was there to teach people who had grown up in the struggle how to get shit done. He was made such a hero by his fellow white people that the allegations of him sexually assaulting multiple women were able to be swept under the rug.
Among the many other examples, the one that stands out the most to me is when Mario Van Peebles was attempting to make the movie “Panther.” He was told by studio executive after studio executive that he needed a white lead. One exec even suggested that he focus on a white person who would meet some black youth and teach them to stand up for themselves. These men would later become the Black Panthers. The importance of having a white lead (even if the main character was a person of color in real life) plays right into creating and maintaining the white savior complex.
The last few essays focused more on what white people can do to be good accomplices. The main idea I drew from this portion of the book is that “Support means using whatever privilege and access you have to influence the systems that have power over the lives of others.”
carolinacortes's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
4.5
madcilantrist's review against another edition
5.0
Highly recommend. A powerful lens to see through privilege blinders and how the "hero" myth is insidiously harmful.
This excerpt is a great preview if you're considering reading it: http://www.truth-out.org/opinion/item/38989-saviors-believe-that-they-are-better-than-the-people-they-are-saving
The author draws on tons of history and current examples that clearly illustrate how we have inherited a deeply-rooted popular conception of “doing good” that really does far more harm.
This excerpt is a great preview if you're considering reading it: http://www.truth-out.org/opinion/item/38989-saviors-believe-that-they-are-better-than-the-people-they-are-saving
The author draws on tons of history and current examples that clearly illustrate how we have inherited a deeply-rooted popular conception of “doing good” that really does far more harm.
heavenlyspit's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
jessbooknook's review against another edition
4.0
This book is incredibly insightful discussion of the saviour complex, and how the capitalist patriarchal systems we live in are set up to promote this saviourism without inciting us to actually make meaningful change. This well structured, thoroughly researched literature review is essential reading for anyone who wishes to be involved in activism and charity, ESPECIALLY white people. As a white, cisgender woman this made me even more aware of how the privilege I hold can so often cause so much harm. It also has recommended many books which I plan to read next to further educate myself on how to help solve issues I am passionate about in a non-problematic way. I see the world and people's intentions differently after reading this.
The only thing preventing me from rating this book 5* is that it was sometimes a little difficult to follow, and I did have to read pages a couple of times to fully understand them sometimes. I feel that the chapters may have benefitted from more conclusive endings which sum up that chapter's points before moving on to the next. That said, it was still a fantastic book.
The only thing preventing me from rating this book 5* is that it was sometimes a little difficult to follow, and I did have to read pages a couple of times to fully understand them sometimes. I feel that the chapters may have benefitted from more conclusive endings which sum up that chapter's points before moving on to the next. That said, it was still a fantastic book.