The critically lauded author of The Beast Side and The Cook Up returns with an existential look at life in low-income black communities, while also offering a new framework for how we can improve the conversations about them.

While author D. Watkins is pleased about the number of books exploring issues of race that are being published, there’s one aspect that doesn’t get enough attention: the hood. The Baltimore native knows firsthand what it means to live in poverty, where violence and drugs are inescapable. As he sees it, the perspective of people who live in poor black communities is largely absent from the work of many of the top intellectuals who speak and write about race.

Now, D. Watkins is here to tell his truth. Built upon Watkins's own experiences, The Message eases us into the bigger conversation about race and the various issues affecting poor black neighborhoods in America. Unapologetic and eye-opening, The Message identifies and addresses a range of issues affecting these low-income communities—such as the trouble with misrepresentation and why we need more than one black voice—and sheds light on the harsh realities of daily life. Additionally, Watkins examines various crucial activist movements, including the Civil Rights Movement, and asks what it means to be a model activist in today’s world.

Through the personal retelling of his journey, Watkins aims to illuminate the lessons he’s learned navigating through two very distinct worlds—the hood and the elite sanctums by the prominent black thinkers and public figures—in hopes of providing actionable solutions.