BOOK REVIEW: The Plight Of The Black Man

Reviewers: YEMI ADEBISI and CELESTINE AMOKE

Title: The End & The Start Point Of The Black

Man: The Facts, The Fiction, And The Feelings

Author: Michael A. Abiodun

Publisher: Grecian Limited

No. of Pages: 169

“Was the Black Race (and indeed the black man) cursed from the beginning? This is what the author, Michael A. Abiodun, described as the “unending and concerning question,” He sets out to provide answers in the book, a product of ingenuity and intensive research.

The book traces the origins of the black man, the point at which he missed the road map to greatness, and looks at the possible liberation of the black man by the black man.

He looks at the facts, the fiction, the feelings, and the future realities of the black man’s emancipation from himself or the continuing slavery and servitude of the black race to other races.

The emancipation, he believes, lies in a conscious choice of the majority of the black race.

He also believes it lies in the evolutionary selection of the minority of them who must be driven by the spirit of change and who might also compel change on the majority.

This minority, he contends, must be a group of movements with the singularity of spirit and purpose propelled by the appetite to ensure a better life for the black man based on the realisation of the present changes.

He contends that the minority movement must realise that the black man has not been competing fully or been involved in equal participation or because he cannot compete. He competes only in his enclave.

The author explains that competing through the sense of it means asserting equal hegemony beyond one’s dominating frontiers, not minding the daunting challenges of unequal opportunities.

He notes that whatever the arguments anyone may adduce, the fact is that “for several centuries, the black man has been a slave to the white man and more recently to the oriental people – the Chinese, the Indians, the Mongoloids, the Arabs, etc.”

He insists that the enslavement and servitude had been the fault of the misdeeds and such foundational faults occasioned by the black man himself. Therefore, the black man shall never be free until the point he realises the truth that his pains are caused by himself and will remain so until he arrives at the consciousness that he is the devil plaguing himself.

In one of his introductory statements, he writes, “Seeing is believing as we often say and easily admit. So, if any fellow black man or associates of the black race reading this piece feels differently about the content of this piece of writing, the right attitude will not be to confine this piece to the waste bin. Rather, further research on the topic being addressed in this book is reasonably the better approach. At that point, personal experience will enhance the smooth transition of belief from the realm of mere sight and conception to the level of engraved knowledge.”

As usual, Abiodun demonstrates his proficiency in research and ingenuity in contributing to knowledge and public discourse. Though the book is not about the history of the black people, as he stated in the beginning, students of history, political science, and public affairs or any curious mind will find the book a good resource. Therefore, we have no hesitation in recommending the book to all libraries in the country.

Michael A. Abiodun is a prolific writer; he has a Master’s Degree (LLM) in International Commercial Law obtained from the University of Aberdeen, United Kingdom. He has equally undertaken Ph.D. studies in Human Rights, Security, and UK Antiterrorism laws from the same Institution.

The book, including 19 others published by the author, is on paperbacks and online in Amazon, Payhip, and Kobo.

Michael A. Abiodun is currently an attorney and a federal prosecutor, demonstrating both prosecutorial and academic excellence in matters relating to international law and counterterrorism. You can contact the author through: plasmodium1012@gmail.com and constantstar1@gmail.com.