Thank you!
Acknowledgments
My Vanishing Country is a true labor of love for me, and it could not have been done without the support, encouragement, and faith of so many people. It would be impossible to name them all, though I must start with my kin. I do not have a large family, but my mother and father are my heroes, my true North Stars. They did whatever necessary to ensure I had the tools growing up to try to reach my greatest aspirations. Nosizwe and Lumumba, my sister and brother, have always been there for me, even as we try to navigate the expectations of life and simply make our parents proud. Although they are gone, I owe great thanks to my grandparents for giving so much through the ministry, military, business, and classroom. Their lessons of service to community provided me with a playbook on how to give as well as a reason to stand tall and be proud.
I truly believe I’m a child of “The Movement.” For all those who have sacrificed and bled for the freedoms we have today—this is an ode to you.
“Friendship” is an overused word, but the contributions of Jamil “Pop” Williams, Jarrod Loadholt, Brandon Childs, Brian Fitch, Jason Mercer, Rob Hewitt, and Anthony Locke cannot be understated. As we grow into fathers and husbands, I hope one day you will reach for this book, dust it off a bit, and show your children through these pages how we all have grown from boys to men.
I also owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to HarperCollins and my team. I knocked on the doors of twenty publishers, who I hoped would listen to my ideas, but to no avail. However, Tracy Sherrod, Judith Curr, and Patrik Henry Bass not only took my call but invited me to come to their offices in New York City to sell myself and my story. To Paul Fedorko, Tatsha Robertson, and Crystal Johns, you never gave up on me, and through all the frustrations, we have created a book that I hope can impact the lives of many for generations to come. Thank you, Jeff Ourvan, for your careful reads.
My four years at Morehouse College cultivated me into the man I am today. It was Morehouse that placed that crown above my head and challenged me to continue working and growing to one day reach it.
Lastly, these are the most emotional sentences of the entire book. Ellen, I love you so much. You are everything and my true partner. You giving me the strength daily to get through life’s challenges allowed me to pour my heart out on paper. Kai, Stokely, and Sadie, I will give my all every day so that you can be free. Daddy loves you.
About the Author
BAKARI SELLERS is a CNN political analyst and was the youngest-ever member of the South Carolina state legislature. Named in 2010 to Time magazine’s “40 Under 40” list, he is also a practicing attorney fighting to give a voice to the voiceless.
Discover great authors, exclusive offers, and more at hc.com.
Copyright
MY VANISHING COUNTRY. Copyright © 2020 by Bakari Sellers. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
Cover design by Nayon Cho
Cover photograph provided by the author
FIRST EDITION
* * *
Names: Sellers, Bakari, 1984– author.
Title: My vanishing country : a memoir / Bakari Sellers.
Description: First edition. | New York, NY : Amistad, 2020
Identifiers: LCCN 2019040021 | ISBN 9780062917454 (hardcover) | ISBN 9780062917461 (paperback) | ISBN 9780062940315 (ebook) | ISBN 9780062917478 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Sellers, Bakari, 1984– | African American legislators—South Carolina—Biography. | Legislators—South Carolina—Biography. | South Carolina. General Assembly. House of Representatives—Biography. | Rural African Americans—South Carolina—Social conditions—20th century. | Racism—South Carolina—History—21st century. | Denmark (S.C.)—Biography.
Classification: LCC F275.42.S45 A3 2020 | DDC 328.73/092 [B]—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019040021
* * *
Digital Edition MAY 2020 ISBN: 978-0-06-291747-8
Version 04032020
Print ISBN: 978-0-06-291745-4
About the Publisher
Australia
HarperCollins Publishers Australia Pty. Ltd.
Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street
Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia
Canada
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Bay Adelaide Centre, East Tower
22 Adelaide Street West, 41st Floor
Toronto, Ontario, M5H 4E3
www.harpercollins.ca
India
HarperCollins India
A 75, Sector 57
Noida
Uttar Pradesh 201 301
www.harpercollins.co.in
New Zealand
HarperCollins Publishers New Zealand
Unit D1, 63 Apollo Drive
Rosedale 0632
www.harpercollins.co.nz
United Kingdom
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF, UK
www.harpercollins.co.uk
United States
HarperCollins Publishers Inc.
195 Broadway
New York, NY 10007
www.harpercollins.com