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The Good Black

A True Story of Race in America

Author Paul M. Barrett
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Paperback
$24.00 US
Penguin Adult HC/TR | Plume
On sale Jan 01, 2000 | 320 Pages | 9780452278592
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Larry Mungin spent his life preparing to succeed in the white world. He looked away from racial inequality and hostility, believing he'd make it if he worked hard and played by the rules. He rose from a Queens housing project to Harvard Law School, and went on to practice law at major corporate firms. But just at the point when he thought he'd make it, when he should have been considered for partnership, he sued his employer for racial discrimination. The firm claimed it went out of its way to help Larry because of his race, while Larry thought he'd been treated unfairly. Was Larry a victim of racial discrimination, or just another victim of the typical dog-eat-dog corporate law culture? A thought-provoking courtroom drama with the fast pace of a commercial novel, The Good Black asks readers to rethink their ideas about race and is a fascinating look at the inner workings of the legal profession.
Chapter One: "Don't Be Afraid; I'm One of the Good Blacks"
Chapter Two: "Eat What You Kill"
Chapter Three: "You Don't Want to Mess with This Guy"
Chapter Four: "Play by the Rules and the System Will Treat You Right"
Chapter Five: "You'll Get Screwed the Way I Got Screwed"
Chapter Six: "A Balls-Out Firm"
Chapter Seven: "What Are You Doing with That Nigger Friend?"
Chapter Eight: "A Cocky Guy in for a Fall"
Chapter Nine: "Saving Mungin"
Chapter Ten: "You Fell Between the Cracks"
Chapter Eleven: "As Long As You Get a Paycheck, You Do as You're Told"
Chapter Twelve: "They Promised You the World; They Gave You the Street Corner"
Chapter Thirteen: "I Am a Whistle-Blower"
Chapter Fourteen:" There Will Be a Trial"
Chapter Fifteen: "Racism: When It's There, You Can See It"
Chapter Sixteen: "It's My Party; I'll Cry If I Want To"

Chapter Seventeen: "Afraid We Would Lose Him"
Chapter Eighteen: "Shucking and Jiving"
Chapter Nineteen: "Teach the Firm a Lesson"
Chapter Twenty: "We Were Pushing for Him"
Chapter Twenty-One: "God Has a Plan for Everybody"
Chapter Twenty-Two: "No Reasonable Juror..."
Chapter Twenty-Three": Conclusion: Integration's Paradox

Epilogue
Afterword
Index

Paul M. Barrett is an assistant managing editor and senior writer at Businessweek. He is the author of the New York Times bestseller Glock: The Rise of America's Gun, American Islam: The Struggle for the Soul of a Religion, and The Good Black: A True Story of Race in America. Barrett lives and works in New York City. View titles by Paul M. Barrett

About

Larry Mungin spent his life preparing to succeed in the white world. He looked away from racial inequality and hostility, believing he'd make it if he worked hard and played by the rules. He rose from a Queens housing project to Harvard Law School, and went on to practice law at major corporate firms. But just at the point when he thought he'd make it, when he should have been considered for partnership, he sued his employer for racial discrimination. The firm claimed it went out of its way to help Larry because of his race, while Larry thought he'd been treated unfairly. Was Larry a victim of racial discrimination, or just another victim of the typical dog-eat-dog corporate law culture? A thought-provoking courtroom drama with the fast pace of a commercial novel, The Good Black asks readers to rethink their ideas about race and is a fascinating look at the inner workings of the legal profession.

Table of Contents

Chapter One: "Don't Be Afraid; I'm One of the Good Blacks"
Chapter Two: "Eat What You Kill"
Chapter Three: "You Don't Want to Mess with This Guy"
Chapter Four: "Play by the Rules and the System Will Treat You Right"
Chapter Five: "You'll Get Screwed the Way I Got Screwed"
Chapter Six: "A Balls-Out Firm"
Chapter Seven: "What Are You Doing with That Nigger Friend?"
Chapter Eight: "A Cocky Guy in for a Fall"
Chapter Nine: "Saving Mungin"
Chapter Ten: "You Fell Between the Cracks"
Chapter Eleven: "As Long As You Get a Paycheck, You Do as You're Told"
Chapter Twelve: "They Promised You the World; They Gave You the Street Corner"
Chapter Thirteen: "I Am a Whistle-Blower"
Chapter Fourteen:" There Will Be a Trial"
Chapter Fifteen: "Racism: When It's There, You Can See It"
Chapter Sixteen: "It's My Party; I'll Cry If I Want To"

Chapter Seventeen: "Afraid We Would Lose Him"
Chapter Eighteen: "Shucking and Jiving"
Chapter Nineteen: "Teach the Firm a Lesson"
Chapter Twenty: "We Were Pushing for Him"
Chapter Twenty-One: "God Has a Plan for Everybody"
Chapter Twenty-Two: "No Reasonable Juror..."
Chapter Twenty-Three": Conclusion: Integration's Paradox

Epilogue
Afterword
Index

Author

Paul M. Barrett is an assistant managing editor and senior writer at Businessweek. He is the author of the New York Times bestseller Glock: The Rise of America's Gun, American Islam: The Struggle for the Soul of a Religion, and The Good Black: A True Story of Race in America. Barrett lives and works in New York City. View titles by Paul M. Barrett

Other Books by this Author

  • Law of the Jungle
    Law of the Jungle
    The $19 Billion Legal Battle Over Oil in the Rain Forest and the Lawyer Who'd Stop at Nothing to Win
    Paul M. Barrett
    9780770436360
    $21.00 US
    Paperback
    Crown
    Sep 22, 2015
  • Glock
    Glock
    The Rise of America's Gun
    Paul M. Barrett
    9780307719959
    $19.00 US
    Paperback
    Crown
    Jan 15, 2013
  • Law of the Jungle
    Law of the Jungle
    The $19 Billion Legal Battle Over Oil in the Rain Forest and the Lawyer Who'd Stop at Nothing to Win
    Paul M. Barrett
    9780770436360
    $21.00 US
    Paperback
    Crown
    Sep 22, 2015
  • Glock
    Glock
    The Rise of America's Gun
    Paul M. Barrett
    9780307719959
    $19.00 US
    Paperback
    Crown
    Jan 15, 2013

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