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Created Equal: The Painful Past, Confusing Present, and Hopeful Future of Race in America
In this inspiring New York Times bestseller, conservative icon Dr. Ben Carson lays out a hopeful road map for how America can come together. External physical characteristics that are genetically encoded are things over which no individual has control. But rather than appreciating the gift of diversity, some have chosen to use it to drive wedges between groups of people. Some of these external characteristics are associated with the past moral failing of slavery. Though slavery in America formally ended in the 1860s, the vestiges of that evil institution are still with us today, and those vestiges often inflict guilt on some and facilitate feelings of victimhood in others. In Created Equal, Dr. Carson uses his own personal experiences as a member of a racial minority, along with the writings and experiences of others from multiple backgrounds and demographics, to analyze the current state of race relations in America. Instead of using race as an excuse to remake America into something completely antithetical to the Constitution, Dr. Carson suggests ways to enhance and bring great success to our nation and all multiethnic societies by magnifying America's incredible strengths instead of her historical weaknesses.
273 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 17, 2022
129 people are currently reading
2027 people want to read
About the author
Ben Carson
60 books943 followersBenjamin Solomon "Ben" Carson, Sr., M.D. is an American neurosurgeon and the Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the United States by President George W. Bush in 2008.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 83 reviews
July 22, 2022
I have always had such respect for Dr. Carson. What a great book. Dr. Carson is such an intelligent man. This was a good read, enlightening. In a time when it seems nearly impossible to find logical, well-crafted tomes based on truthful firsthand experience with racism, Dr. Carson's book is a much-needed analysis.
Once again Dr. Carson wrote a time book about what is happening today in our country. I love how he shares from about his past experiences with race and what steps he took to avoid the trap of playing victim. He offers solutions and reminds us we are all created equal. He shows us that we should not anyone rewrite our history, learn from the past and walk together. Highly recommend.
Once again Dr. Carson wrote a time book about what is happening today in our country. I love how he shares from about his past experiences with race and what steps he took to avoid the trap of playing victim. He offers solutions and reminds us we are all created equal. He shows us that we should not anyone rewrite our history, learn from the past and walk together. Highly recommend.
June 14, 2022
A must-read for every American , no-matter their ski-coor!
Ben Carson is a remarkable man and achiever who has future-minded ideas from an olde-school philosophy. America, indeed, the world needs more forward-thinking Christians like him in our schools and government.
Ben Carson is a remarkable man and achiever who has future-minded ideas from an olde-school philosophy. America, indeed, the world needs more forward-thinking Christians like him in our schools and government.
June 20, 2022
Every American needs to read this book. If we want to fix America we need to remember God first and love our neighbor second. I sure hope he runs for president… Ben Carson would be a tremendous leader for our nation.
June 7, 2022
Created Equal: The Painful Past, Confusing Present, and Hopeful future of Race in America, Dr. Ben Carson, Candy Carson, Dr. Alveda King, authors; Terrence King, narrator
This is a very short book that reveals the myths and misnomers about people of color that are being spread by the left, especially the progressives, to advance their political agenda. It very cogently explains how their supposed efforts to help actually harm the people they are pretending to support and protect. People of color are neither dirty nor do they have lower IQ’s, although the left accuses white people of believing that. All white people are not systemically racist, either. Young white children are being forced to deal with guilt for something they did not do. Others are expected to pay for sins they did not commit. It is the left that is most likely to spread those lies that hurt society, but it is with the complicity of the media that neither checks or validates the claims of anything they print that fits their biased narrative.
Dr. Carson provides examples of the ways in which he may have been subjected to racism, and he explains how he handled each of the situations. Rather than being insulted and having a knee-jerk reaction, he understood that the slight may merely have been a logical error because of expectations, be they correct or incorrect, and instead of getting angry, he responded with understanding often developing relationships far into the future with some of these same people who said something foolish, like assuming he was an employee not a brain surgeon.
Because he does not waste words, he covers a great deal in this book, from his early years to his years working with President Trump and the obstruction of the left, that even accused him of improper expenditures which were all proven to be false accusations. He carefully outlines the need for a good education, the open sharing of ideas, socialization, patience and acceptance rather than identity politics, cancel culture, mandates and witch hunts. He rejects the need for safe spaces and encourages us all to communicate. He warns of the fascist behaviors we are witnessing as government and the private sector get together to punish those that don’t follow their demands, like firing the unvaccinated; he likens it to a totalitarian approach. He rejects the approach of Saul Alinsky’s “Rules for Radicals”. He supports free, but fair, elections and is against the practice of manipulating voters. He and his wife have supported scholarships for worthy students who also engage in humanitarian endeavors. They have sponsored reading rooms in Title I schools, attributing his respect for books to his mother who was actually illiterate, married at age 13, but successfully raised not only inspired him but also his brother Curtis. He even addresses Biden’s debacle with the Afghanistan withdrawal. If we don’t learn from history, we never will learn.
He had experiences in school that were unforgivable, teachers who resented his intelligence, bullies who resented his success and others who wanted to harm him with words or deliberately giving him poor grades, but he never allowed their stupidity to influence his future. He proved them wrong. He believes that Cancel Culture is the equivalent of Jim Crow laws since both are trying to do harm. He was accused of acting white, and would respond with “what is acting black”? He does not judge the system but he judges the attitude of people. They do not have to be victims.
As he explains that slavery predates even Jesus Christ, the reader realizes that CRT and the 1619 theory are both incorrect. Blacks owned slaves and even whites were enslaved. He explains white privilege and the wealth gap. He questions reparations. Who should receive them? Why should someone pay for sins they have not committed? If black ancestors owned slaves, should they pay the reparations and not receive them? He believes in the Constitution and its ability to protect us and guarantee our freedom. Much of the book also supports his faith and his deep religious conviction. He often cites from the Bible. He acknowledges that our country has made enormous strides with race relations, but admits we still have room for improvement. He prefers, however, to concentrate on the positive, rather than the negative that the left has exaggerated for political purposes. He admits that racism exists on both sides, white views about blacks and black views about whites. He attributes his open mind to the fact that his family did not spread negative racial ideas. If that had all he had heard, he too would be a racist. He believes racists are created from the environment, not from our DNA, and our early education will have a lasting influence on our behavior and beliefs. We have to be taught to be racist.
This is a very short book that reveals the myths and misnomers about people of color that are being spread by the left, especially the progressives, to advance their political agenda. It very cogently explains how their supposed efforts to help actually harm the people they are pretending to support and protect. People of color are neither dirty nor do they have lower IQ’s, although the left accuses white people of believing that. All white people are not systemically racist, either. Young white children are being forced to deal with guilt for something they did not do. Others are expected to pay for sins they did not commit. It is the left that is most likely to spread those lies that hurt society, but it is with the complicity of the media that neither checks or validates the claims of anything they print that fits their biased narrative.
Dr. Carson provides examples of the ways in which he may have been subjected to racism, and he explains how he handled each of the situations. Rather than being insulted and having a knee-jerk reaction, he understood that the slight may merely have been a logical error because of expectations, be they correct or incorrect, and instead of getting angry, he responded with understanding often developing relationships far into the future with some of these same people who said something foolish, like assuming he was an employee not a brain surgeon.
Because he does not waste words, he covers a great deal in this book, from his early years to his years working with President Trump and the obstruction of the left, that even accused him of improper expenditures which were all proven to be false accusations. He carefully outlines the need for a good education, the open sharing of ideas, socialization, patience and acceptance rather than identity politics, cancel culture, mandates and witch hunts. He rejects the need for safe spaces and encourages us all to communicate. He warns of the fascist behaviors we are witnessing as government and the private sector get together to punish those that don’t follow their demands, like firing the unvaccinated; he likens it to a totalitarian approach. He rejects the approach of Saul Alinsky’s “Rules for Radicals”. He supports free, but fair, elections and is against the practice of manipulating voters. He and his wife have supported scholarships for worthy students who also engage in humanitarian endeavors. They have sponsored reading rooms in Title I schools, attributing his respect for books to his mother who was actually illiterate, married at age 13, but successfully raised not only inspired him but also his brother Curtis. He even addresses Biden’s debacle with the Afghanistan withdrawal. If we don’t learn from history, we never will learn.
He had experiences in school that were unforgivable, teachers who resented his intelligence, bullies who resented his success and others who wanted to harm him with words or deliberately giving him poor grades, but he never allowed their stupidity to influence his future. He proved them wrong. He believes that Cancel Culture is the equivalent of Jim Crow laws since both are trying to do harm. He was accused of acting white, and would respond with “what is acting black”? He does not judge the system but he judges the attitude of people. They do not have to be victims.
As he explains that slavery predates even Jesus Christ, the reader realizes that CRT and the 1619 theory are both incorrect. Blacks owned slaves and even whites were enslaved. He explains white privilege and the wealth gap. He questions reparations. Who should receive them? Why should someone pay for sins they have not committed? If black ancestors owned slaves, should they pay the reparations and not receive them? He believes in the Constitution and its ability to protect us and guarantee our freedom. Much of the book also supports his faith and his deep religious conviction. He often cites from the Bible. He acknowledges that our country has made enormous strides with race relations, but admits we still have room for improvement. He prefers, however, to concentrate on the positive, rather than the negative that the left has exaggerated for political purposes. He admits that racism exists on both sides, white views about blacks and black views about whites. He attributes his open mind to the fact that his family did not spread negative racial ideas. If that had all he had heard, he too would be a racist. He believes racists are created from the environment, not from our DNA, and our early education will have a lasting influence on our behavior and beliefs. We have to be taught to be racist.
August 11, 2022
Some things I agreed with, some things I didn't. It's our differences that make us interesting, though, which is pretty much the theme of this book. There was historical detail that I thought was unnecessary and a lot of repeated information. The audio narration was devoid of anything even close to inflection. It sounded more like a dull users' manual than a book.
October 5, 2024
I had respect for Carson for his career as a neurosurgeon and the obstacles he had to surmount to get there, and his calm demeanor made him stand out amongst the herd of Republican candidates in 2016. If he had been elected President, I would have considered him underqualified given his lack of experience and would have disagreed with him on many points, but it wouldn't have been the catastrophe that was Trump's presidency, and I at least believe him when he speaks about his faith.
I lost a lot of that respect for him when he endorsed Trump and became an emphatic Trump yes-man. His role in the Department of HUD made zero sense (at least something in the medical field would have been logical!) and seemed to consist of rubber-stamping whatever Trump wanted, regardless of whether it was something Carson supported in the past. So I wasn't wild about reading this book, but a family member gave it to me, and I felt obligated to read it, even though it's not what I would have chosen.
I don't really see the point of this book. It's sort of a memoir, sort of an incomplete recap of the history of slavery and racism (using history.com and encylopedia.com almost exclusively for its sources, and ending on a triumphant note in 1966, as if that was the death knell of all racism and nothing happened after that--no assassination of MLKJ, no Fair Housing Act?), but mostly a repetitive, poorly organized, meandering recitation of Carson's political stances. Carson waffles between recounting experiences of discrimination in his own life but then saying however angry he was at the time, those experiences really weren't that bad (including when some fellow students threatened to kill him), and we should all move on. Carson himself seems of two minds on what he's saying. On page 198, he says, "Thoughout all those years of social class ladder climbing, I never felt as if someone was discriminating against me." But on page 196, he literally just told a story about how he was ignored at a Jaguar dealership because the salsemen assumed he couldn't afford to buy a Jaguar. "There was no basis for them to draw that conclusion other than the color of my skin," he says. Sir, that is discrimination!
Carson points to the successful Black people in our country as proof that systemic racism doesn't exist, as if because we've had one Black president means that no court, local legislation, sheriff's office, company hiring policy, or real estate policy can have racism in it. He says we should focus on the positives, which is great, but not if it excludes digging into things that are clearly wrong (say, Bank of America's predatory lending to minorities, or the entire police department of Lexington, Mississippi scamming and abusing the town for years.
I agree with Carson that we should absolutely celebrate how far we have come as a country from the days of slavery or Jim Crow--By all means! Do that!!--but how do you fix the issues that remain if you refuse to discuss them? The two things are not mutually exclusive! In between "burn down the entire system" and "everything is just FINE, thank you very much" lies 1. a whole range of other options and 2. our reality.
Then there are the inaccuracies. I don't have time to go page by page, but here several I ran across in just three pages:
Page 143: He says that "today's progressive culture teaches us to resent any neighbor whose political views are at variance with ours and that it is perfectly permissible to hurt that person or their family. That is what cancel culture is all about." To be clear, if you say or do something dumb, there will be repercussions, and I am not against consequence culture. But if what Carson is referring to is abuse, threats, doxxing, etc., he should have equal sympathy for the Republican business owner in Springfield, Ohio getting death threats because he employs legal Haitian immigrants, the election officials already receiving death threats and potentially dangerous packages in the mail from MAGA supporters, and the jury members who were doxxed during Trump's trial, to name a very, very few instances out of many. These are clearly not the result of "woke" culture.
Page 144: "People who have antibodies from having had the disease [COVID] still must take the vaccine in order to get a vaccine passport." Guys, THERE IS NOT AND NEVER WAS A VACCINE PASSPORT in the US at a federal level. The most we had was a requirement for vaccination for NON-CITIZENS entering the country. Individual cities, counties, and companies could require vaccination for certain activities for a bit, but even that changed over time.
Page 145: "Under the previous administration, we had the best border control ever." Setting aside the question of whether separating children from their parents is the best border control ever, Trump's presidency had fewer deportations and arrests than Obama's first presidency, and April 2020's unusually low illegal border crossings were due to the pandemic. Apprehensions at the border in Trump’s final two months in office were higher than in Obama’s last two months in office. Carson goes on to connect, without any proof, high illegal border crossings with high unemployment among Black Americans.
I'm going to end this here, but you get the idea. I don't think Carson is a bad person, but he's clearly accustomed to the Trumpian method of stating things as facts without providing proof.
I lost a lot of that respect for him when he endorsed Trump and became an emphatic Trump yes-man. His role in the Department of HUD made zero sense (at least something in the medical field would have been logical!) and seemed to consist of rubber-stamping whatever Trump wanted, regardless of whether it was something Carson supported in the past. So I wasn't wild about reading this book, but a family member gave it to me, and I felt obligated to read it, even though it's not what I would have chosen.
I don't really see the point of this book. It's sort of a memoir, sort of an incomplete recap of the history of slavery and racism (using history.com and encylopedia.com almost exclusively for its sources, and ending on a triumphant note in 1966, as if that was the death knell of all racism and nothing happened after that--no assassination of MLKJ, no Fair Housing Act?), but mostly a repetitive, poorly organized, meandering recitation of Carson's political stances. Carson waffles between recounting experiences of discrimination in his own life but then saying however angry he was at the time, those experiences really weren't that bad (including when some fellow students threatened to kill him), and we should all move on. Carson himself seems of two minds on what he's saying. On page 198, he says, "Thoughout all those years of social class ladder climbing, I never felt as if someone was discriminating against me." But on page 196, he literally just told a story about how he was ignored at a Jaguar dealership because the salsemen assumed he couldn't afford to buy a Jaguar. "There was no basis for them to draw that conclusion other than the color of my skin," he says. Sir, that is discrimination!
Carson points to the successful Black people in our country as proof that systemic racism doesn't exist, as if because we've had one Black president means that no court, local legislation, sheriff's office, company hiring policy, or real estate policy can have racism in it. He says we should focus on the positives, which is great, but not if it excludes digging into things that are clearly wrong (say, Bank of America's predatory lending to minorities, or the entire police department of Lexington, Mississippi scamming and abusing the town for years.
I agree with Carson that we should absolutely celebrate how far we have come as a country from the days of slavery or Jim Crow--By all means! Do that!!--but how do you fix the issues that remain if you refuse to discuss them? The two things are not mutually exclusive! In between "burn down the entire system" and "everything is just FINE, thank you very much" lies 1. a whole range of other options and 2. our reality.
Then there are the inaccuracies. I don't have time to go page by page, but here several I ran across in just three pages:
Page 143: He says that "today's progressive culture teaches us to resent any neighbor whose political views are at variance with ours and that it is perfectly permissible to hurt that person or their family. That is what cancel culture is all about." To be clear, if you say or do something dumb, there will be repercussions, and I am not against consequence culture. But if what Carson is referring to is abuse, threats, doxxing, etc., he should have equal sympathy for the Republican business owner in Springfield, Ohio getting death threats because he employs legal Haitian immigrants, the election officials already receiving death threats and potentially dangerous packages in the mail from MAGA supporters, and the jury members who were doxxed during Trump's trial, to name a very, very few instances out of many. These are clearly not the result of "woke" culture.
Page 144: "People who have antibodies from having had the disease [COVID] still must take the vaccine in order to get a vaccine passport." Guys, THERE IS NOT AND NEVER WAS A VACCINE PASSPORT in the US at a federal level. The most we had was a requirement for vaccination for NON-CITIZENS entering the country. Individual cities, counties, and companies could require vaccination for certain activities for a bit, but even that changed over time.
Page 145: "Under the previous administration, we had the best border control ever." Setting aside the question of whether separating children from their parents is the best border control ever, Trump's presidency had fewer deportations and arrests than Obama's first presidency, and April 2020's unusually low illegal border crossings were due to the pandemic. Apprehensions at the border in Trump’s final two months in office were higher than in Obama’s last two months in office. Carson goes on to connect, without any proof, high illegal border crossings with high unemployment among Black Americans.
I'm going to end this here, but you get the idea. I don't think Carson is a bad person, but he's clearly accustomed to the Trumpian method of stating things as facts without providing proof.
March 27, 2023
This app needs to have 0 stars. We need a fax check throughout this whole book and revisit in today’s climate.
Making the generalization that there’s good white people and bad white people; good black people and bad black people is not define what racism is. Cherry picking some good in both on both side is not defining or disproving racism.
Referring to a Bible quote of, I’m going to be the best slave ever as a motivational phrase, is preposterous! And definitely a window of the disturbance of how this author thinks. Just go with the flow.
Using himself as an example of hard work that he was able to get through Yale and be excepted is Dissen genuine. You were excepted at the time where affirmative action was put in place and they started excepting black men and you just so happen to be chosen. As brilliant as you are, that was not enough to get you excepted without the progressiveness people standing up and demanding equality.. There are many more brilliant black men at that time but they only chose a handful and you were lucky.
Author claim that cancel culture was keeping black people oppressed. Are you kidding me? You chose the word cancel culture because people started demanding the whole truth and putting the white washed history that’s been peddled throughout time, as incomplete or in accurate. Fixing the mistake does not cancel the mistake or perhaps it does but needs to be so knowing the truth about the devastation that was caused to certain groups of people may offend the group of people causing the devastation. Let that make sense! The idea is not to feel bad but perhaps to change your ways and realize that you can do better.
Author then goes to lecture native American reservations, calling them Indians by the way, and finds that their lack of motivation because they’ve been given casinos. Yes, that’s why the poverty line for Native American is insulting and lack of decency to Native Americans is all due because they have casinos. Again, let that make sense
The author one goes on to refer to African-Americans and they’re needing to take charge of their own destiny. They need to stop blaming white people for their circumstances. It’s a perfect point to make to poor white people who claim that immigrants and blacks are taking their jobs and that’s why they’re poor and all of their tax money goes to pay for welfare. Although there are more white Americans on welfare by outstanding numbers to black Americans. Why isn’t the author looking at this statistics and saying to poor white people stop blaming black people on welfare and pull yourself up.g
When he is referring to the riots after George Floyd, he actually stated that that is unthinkable in today. Was he sleeping during January 6? Blaming antifa which is an anti-fascism movement, Anti-fascism is not a bad thing. I’m trying to wrap my mind around the fact that you
Perhaps don’t understand anti-means not and fascism meaning government dictated. So the movement of anti-fascism is democracy! But your Trump is blaming them for everything. The riots after George Floyd killing, were a minute compared to the peaceful protesting. In fact, some of the riders were off-duty police officers that wanted to start discords to deflects. These are statistical numbers that needed to be researched before making a statement in print.
It’s really fascinating to hear people who don’t live in Chicago bring up Chicago statistics. You have no clue how to city is run and the dysfunction of our police department. You want black people to respect the police and if you didn’t resist arrest you wouldn’t get hurt. First off, when you call the police in poor areas in Chicago, they may come 30 minutes after or not at all. And therefore I could understand people in those communities rejecting police all together because they’re not helpful. Being pulled over just because you’re black and doing nothing wrong, is a form of police brutality and racism. Communities that are poor and have crime rates that you love to bring black on black crime, has multi facet circumstances. Schools are not teaching because it’s not safe for kids and they’re disenfranchised in all aspects of society but yet you think they should just try harder.
You bring up that your mother back in the day was able to work her butt off to support a one income household and help raise two children. Did your mother not receive any government benefits to help her along or has the income that she earned at that time relevant to inflation and comparable to the income of the same single mother doing the same job in today’s society and be a successful raising two children? If you’re going to compare you need to have equal footing
. I guarantee you that that income has not increased to the point where cost-of-living matches up.
When the author wants to break it down into three things that will definitely get people out of poverty. One is come on finish high school, this sounds great and should be a no-brainer however, you’re dealing with communities where everyone needs to work in the household in order to make ends meet. And sometimes school takes up working time. It’s a battle ground at the high schools and gang related and this is all because poor areas of disenfranchised and given up hope. It’s wonderful to say go to School tools needed for a well-balanced education not to mention that they’re hungry and you can’t learn on an empty stomach.
The second is, get married. With marriage comes a support system and help ground you and move forward. Great so now I need a partner in order to be successful? Not to mention, I can’t marry who I want. I could only marry what you deemed as an appropriate marriage. So do I marry someone willy-nilly in order to be successful or is it OK to marry a person of my choosing?
Third is to have children after marriage. Great so according to your party, if I get raped I can’t abort and have to live my life according to your beliefs. So if I get pregnant without my consent, is it OK to abort so I can go back to the original plan?
Furthermore the author then goes on to say that black household are telling their children that they cannot be successful because they are black. Wow! I believe the black households are telling their children that’s the way systemic racism is all over, they have to strive and work twice as hard as their white counterparts.
The best is when the author claimed that Fox News was the only news that was portraying both sides of the issue. Again, has he been watching the fox court cases? Where the newscasters are secretly discussing how Trump is a problem and the election was not stolen but they have to perpetuate this big lie in order to keep their constituents happy and keep the money flowing. Their CEO was just in court saying that money was their motivation only.
Then he went on to discuss that we should have freedom of speech and that politically correct and the woke movement is taking that away from us. I guess you should have the right to insult whomever you want as freedom of speech? With freedom of speech comes responsibility you can’t walk around calling black peoplethe N word because you claim you have that freedom. You can’t scream fire in a theater for that same point. The definition of the woke movement is defined as a movement to make people aware of other groups of people that have been disenfranchised by no fault of their own. That means a woman can see viewpoints the mail or a white person can see The viewpoint of a black person etc. How is this a bad thing?
Critical race Theory is only taught in a graduate school setting. The scare tactic of the right wing is pushing this craziness for you to think that they are being taught this in kindergarten! And with this craziness they are taking studies away from kids! O they claim that the statue of David from Michael Angelo is now pornographic! Who is truly suppressing our young citizens? Absolutely ridiculous!
Now you want to bring Bible into the story, first solves freedom from religion not freedom to practice religion only! Judeo Christian is not the American faith as you would like to profess. We have many many different religions in this country and for one religion to ordain their rights over others is suppression. Just imagine if another religion told you this is what we’re going to believe from now on. As far as money and you brought up multiple times, in God we trust and under God for a pledge of allegiance, you do realize that was added years and years after our country was establish? It was added because of one religion trying to inflict their beliefs on everyone else. It’s actually a disgrace to what our nation was created. Nevertheless, do you really believe that Trump calling people of color from other countries shit holes Christian thing to do? Jesus Christ wanted you to feed the hunger, house the homeless, embrace the immigrants. None of these is being performed by your side of the aisle. But yet religion and Christianity keep coming up in every right wing talk.
You finalize the book by stating that things are so great now. We’ve come along way. If you truly have those thoughts, then why is your affiliation party stating make America great again. So that infers that America isn’t great now and things in the past were great. I’m confused that you’re not confused!
Making the generalization that there’s good white people and bad white people; good black people and bad black people is not define what racism is. Cherry picking some good in both on both side is not defining or disproving racism.
Referring to a Bible quote of, I’m going to be the best slave ever as a motivational phrase, is preposterous! And definitely a window of the disturbance of how this author thinks. Just go with the flow.
Using himself as an example of hard work that he was able to get through Yale and be excepted is Dissen genuine. You were excepted at the time where affirmative action was put in place and they started excepting black men and you just so happen to be chosen. As brilliant as you are, that was not enough to get you excepted without the progressiveness people standing up and demanding equality.. There are many more brilliant black men at that time but they only chose a handful and you were lucky.
Author claim that cancel culture was keeping black people oppressed. Are you kidding me? You chose the word cancel culture because people started demanding the whole truth and putting the white washed history that’s been peddled throughout time, as incomplete or in accurate. Fixing the mistake does not cancel the mistake or perhaps it does but needs to be so knowing the truth about the devastation that was caused to certain groups of people may offend the group of people causing the devastation. Let that make sense! The idea is not to feel bad but perhaps to change your ways and realize that you can do better.
Author then goes to lecture native American reservations, calling them Indians by the way, and finds that their lack of motivation because they’ve been given casinos. Yes, that’s why the poverty line for Native American is insulting and lack of decency to Native Americans is all due because they have casinos. Again, let that make sense
The author one goes on to refer to African-Americans and they’re needing to take charge of their own destiny. They need to stop blaming white people for their circumstances. It’s a perfect point to make to poor white people who claim that immigrants and blacks are taking their jobs and that’s why they’re poor and all of their tax money goes to pay for welfare. Although there are more white Americans on welfare by outstanding numbers to black Americans. Why isn’t the author looking at this statistics and saying to poor white people stop blaming black people on welfare and pull yourself up.g
When he is referring to the riots after George Floyd, he actually stated that that is unthinkable in today. Was he sleeping during January 6? Blaming antifa which is an anti-fascism movement, Anti-fascism is not a bad thing. I’m trying to wrap my mind around the fact that you
Perhaps don’t understand anti-means not and fascism meaning government dictated. So the movement of anti-fascism is democracy! But your Trump is blaming them for everything. The riots after George Floyd killing, were a minute compared to the peaceful protesting. In fact, some of the riders were off-duty police officers that wanted to start discords to deflects. These are statistical numbers that needed to be researched before making a statement in print.
It’s really fascinating to hear people who don’t live in Chicago bring up Chicago statistics. You have no clue how to city is run and the dysfunction of our police department. You want black people to respect the police and if you didn’t resist arrest you wouldn’t get hurt. First off, when you call the police in poor areas in Chicago, they may come 30 minutes after or not at all. And therefore I could understand people in those communities rejecting police all together because they’re not helpful. Being pulled over just because you’re black and doing nothing wrong, is a form of police brutality and racism. Communities that are poor and have crime rates that you love to bring black on black crime, has multi facet circumstances. Schools are not teaching because it’s not safe for kids and they’re disenfranchised in all aspects of society but yet you think they should just try harder.
You bring up that your mother back in the day was able to work her butt off to support a one income household and help raise two children. Did your mother not receive any government benefits to help her along or has the income that she earned at that time relevant to inflation and comparable to the income of the same single mother doing the same job in today’s society and be a successful raising two children? If you’re going to compare you need to have equal footing
. I guarantee you that that income has not increased to the point where cost-of-living matches up.
When the author wants to break it down into three things that will definitely get people out of poverty. One is come on finish high school, this sounds great and should be a no-brainer however, you’re dealing with communities where everyone needs to work in the household in order to make ends meet. And sometimes school takes up working time. It’s a battle ground at the high schools and gang related and this is all because poor areas of disenfranchised and given up hope. It’s wonderful to say go to School tools needed for a well-balanced education not to mention that they’re hungry and you can’t learn on an empty stomach.
The second is, get married. With marriage comes a support system and help ground you and move forward. Great so now I need a partner in order to be successful? Not to mention, I can’t marry who I want. I could only marry what you deemed as an appropriate marriage. So do I marry someone willy-nilly in order to be successful or is it OK to marry a person of my choosing?
Third is to have children after marriage. Great so according to your party, if I get raped I can’t abort and have to live my life according to your beliefs. So if I get pregnant without my consent, is it OK to abort so I can go back to the original plan?
Furthermore the author then goes on to say that black household are telling their children that they cannot be successful because they are black. Wow! I believe the black households are telling their children that’s the way systemic racism is all over, they have to strive and work twice as hard as their white counterparts.
The best is when the author claimed that Fox News was the only news that was portraying both sides of the issue. Again, has he been watching the fox court cases? Where the newscasters are secretly discussing how Trump is a problem and the election was not stolen but they have to perpetuate this big lie in order to keep their constituents happy and keep the money flowing. Their CEO was just in court saying that money was their motivation only.
Then he went on to discuss that we should have freedom of speech and that politically correct and the woke movement is taking that away from us. I guess you should have the right to insult whomever you want as freedom of speech? With freedom of speech comes responsibility you can’t walk around calling black peoplethe N word because you claim you have that freedom. You can’t scream fire in a theater for that same point. The definition of the woke movement is defined as a movement to make people aware of other groups of people that have been disenfranchised by no fault of their own. That means a woman can see viewpoints the mail or a white person can see The viewpoint of a black person etc. How is this a bad thing?
Critical race Theory is only taught in a graduate school setting. The scare tactic of the right wing is pushing this craziness for you to think that they are being taught this in kindergarten! And with this craziness they are taking studies away from kids! O they claim that the statue of David from Michael Angelo is now pornographic! Who is truly suppressing our young citizens? Absolutely ridiculous!
Now you want to bring Bible into the story, first solves freedom from religion not freedom to practice religion only! Judeo Christian is not the American faith as you would like to profess. We have many many different religions in this country and for one religion to ordain their rights over others is suppression. Just imagine if another religion told you this is what we’re going to believe from now on. As far as money and you brought up multiple times, in God we trust and under God for a pledge of allegiance, you do realize that was added years and years after our country was establish? It was added because of one religion trying to inflict their beliefs on everyone else. It’s actually a disgrace to what our nation was created. Nevertheless, do you really believe that Trump calling people of color from other countries shit holes Christian thing to do? Jesus Christ wanted you to feed the hunger, house the homeless, embrace the immigrants. None of these is being performed by your side of the aisle. But yet religion and Christianity keep coming up in every right wing talk.
You finalize the book by stating that things are so great now. We’ve come along way. If you truly have those thoughts, then why is your affiliation party stating make America great again. So that infers that America isn’t great now and things in the past were great. I’m confused that you’re not confused!
August 29, 2022
I like Ben Carson a lot—so much so that I would have voted for him in the 2016 Republican primary had he not withdrawn his candidacy. He is the ultimate example of the American dream—an underprivileged Black man that pulled himself up by his bootstraps to became one of the best neurosurgeons in the world. This book is an example of exactly why I like him. He provides a fair, measured, and common sense view on what is happening in America today. He shows what can be accomplished through hard work, kindness, and an open mind by using the example of his own life. And there is such truth in his story and his words.
If you are liberal and seeking to understand why conservatives think the way they do, this would be an excellent lead in. If you are conservative, much of this book won’t be new to you, as I would argue this is already how the majority of conservatives think. I thought Carson gave nice, quick overviews of several hot topics currently pertinent to the problems in the US. The book would have been even better if he went more into depth about these problems. As it reads it’s a quick hit, not an in-depth examination. I also found the book to be a bit disorganized. It jumps from topic to topic somewhat at random without smooth transitions. The only other “criticism” I could make is I think the Bible verses and focus on Christianity is a bit distracting to the central message. Although I am Christian and appreciated it, this may be a turnoff to someone that does not practice the religion, and may cause them to throw out Carson’s arguments by labeling him a Bible thumper. All in all I really enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone who is searching for a common sense view on how to approach the problems happening in the US today. Carson and his mother are truly inspiring people and he has a great story to tell!
If you are liberal and seeking to understand why conservatives think the way they do, this would be an excellent lead in. If you are conservative, much of this book won’t be new to you, as I would argue this is already how the majority of conservatives think. I thought Carson gave nice, quick overviews of several hot topics currently pertinent to the problems in the US. The book would have been even better if he went more into depth about these problems. As it reads it’s a quick hit, not an in-depth examination. I also found the book to be a bit disorganized. It jumps from topic to topic somewhat at random without smooth transitions. The only other “criticism” I could make is I think the Bible verses and focus on Christianity is a bit distracting to the central message. Although I am Christian and appreciated it, this may be a turnoff to someone that does not practice the religion, and may cause them to throw out Carson’s arguments by labeling him a Bible thumper. All in all I really enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone who is searching for a common sense view on how to approach the problems happening in the US today. Carson and his mother are truly inspiring people and he has a great story to tell!
April 27, 2023
Good stuff but not much new information. Not much convincing material or facts but I enjoyed his life story which speaks for itself in the fact that there is more fairness and equality in our country than what the media wants us to think.
July 14, 2022
This is a very positive look at racism and the current very divisive climate in America. I felt he had some positive ideas and suggestions to make America better but I also felt many of his ideas were very simplistic considering the complexity of our society. A few of his comments, written as facts, when I checked them out were somewhat accurate but lacked all of the information needed by the reader to draw a more accurate and comprehensive conclusion. Again, I think he has some very positive and some unique solutions to today's issues I'm just not sure how they can be implemented.
July 3, 2022
This is a review for Created Equal by Dr. Ben Carson. This is a book that everyone should read right now because of what is going on in our country right now. Dr. Carson is an African American, and he felt the need to write a book about his experiences as an African American man growing up in both Detroit and Chicago, and then going on to college after which he became a top brain surgeon. He has worked in government also, and has seen his beloved America being torn apart by lies and deception, so he did something about it. He tells the truth, and this book is a result. He wants to see all races who were created equal, be treated equal, because that is what our founding fathers wanted, and our Heavenly Father want! Hopefully through this book there will be unity! I know it helped me!!
In his book Dr. Carson talks straight about many of the topics facing our nation today, including those that are trying to tear our nation apart. Here are the topics he discusses in his book:
CHAPTER 1 No One Is Born a Racist
CHAPTER 2 How We Look at Race CHAPTER
3 The History of Slavery and Racism in America
CHAPTER 4 Guilt and Victimhood Surrounding Race
CHAPTER 5 Critical Race Theory and the 1619 Project
CHAPTER 6 The George Floyd Turning Point
CHAPTER 7 Media and Big Tech
CHAPTER 8 Does Systemic Racism Exist in America?
CHAPTER 9 Judeo-Christian Values and Racism
CHAPTER 10 Is It Racism or Classism?
CHAPTER 11 Education, the Great Equalizer
CHAPTER 12 The Path Forward
I really loved this book because Dr. Carson was honest about the problems we do have in this country, but he tells the truth about them from his experience, and then gives us solutions to those problems. Most left wing people point out the problems from their agenda, but then offer no solutions, but Dr. Carson does.
This book opened my eyes in a deeper way to those problems, but Dr. Carson wasn't shouting for shutting down our institutions because he respects our Constitution and our laws & government; no, he talks about the message of Dr.Martin Luther King, which is we are all created equal, and should not be judged according to our skin color, but by our character. Also he is against Critical Race Theory which tells white people we are oppressors, and minorities that they are oppressed. This only tears our nation apart! Dr. Carson wants to bring our nation together, as did Dr. King! This book also exposes the lies, shares true history, and shows us how to bring unity amongst all Americans which are a nation of many races, and the change starts with us as individuals and how we treat each other!!! So I believe this is one of the most important books I have read, and I rate it 5/5! Please take time to read it!
In his book Dr. Carson talks straight about many of the topics facing our nation today, including those that are trying to tear our nation apart. Here are the topics he discusses in his book:
CHAPTER 1 No One Is Born a Racist
CHAPTER 2 How We Look at Race CHAPTER
3 The History of Slavery and Racism in America
CHAPTER 4 Guilt and Victimhood Surrounding Race
CHAPTER 5 Critical Race Theory and the 1619 Project
CHAPTER 6 The George Floyd Turning Point
CHAPTER 7 Media and Big Tech
CHAPTER 8 Does Systemic Racism Exist in America?
CHAPTER 9 Judeo-Christian Values and Racism
CHAPTER 10 Is It Racism or Classism?
CHAPTER 11 Education, the Great Equalizer
CHAPTER 12 The Path Forward
I really loved this book because Dr. Carson was honest about the problems we do have in this country, but he tells the truth about them from his experience, and then gives us solutions to those problems. Most left wing people point out the problems from their agenda, but then offer no solutions, but Dr. Carson does.
This book opened my eyes in a deeper way to those problems, but Dr. Carson wasn't shouting for shutting down our institutions because he respects our Constitution and our laws & government; no, he talks about the message of Dr.Martin Luther King, which is we are all created equal, and should not be judged according to our skin color, but by our character. Also he is against Critical Race Theory which tells white people we are oppressors, and minorities that they are oppressed. This only tears our nation apart! Dr. Carson wants to bring our nation together, as did Dr. King! This book also exposes the lies, shares true history, and shows us how to bring unity amongst all Americans which are a nation of many races, and the change starts with us as individuals and how we treat each other!!! So I believe this is one of the most important books I have read, and I rate it 5/5! Please take time to read it!
June 7, 2022
Such a wonderful book by a truly amazing human being. I learned so much about the history of black people in the world at large and in America in particular, as well as about the history of slavery historically throughout the world and in our nation. Here is a man who experienced racial prejudice firsthand in his youth and yet rose to become one of the most brilliant, admired men in America.
Here is wisdom worth learning. After reading this book, I looked up the word “wisdom” in the Bible. Everywhere I looked throughout Scripture, I read verses that could be applied to so much of what Ben Carson shares in this book. For instance: “But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.” James 3:17
Dr. Carson rightfully says that the current narrative espoused by the progressive left as well as the media and social media would have us believe that Black people in America are still repressed and unable to succeed to the same extent as white people. This is an insult to all that Black people have accomplished and achieved within the past 50 years in particular, and to the many white people who stood alongside them and even gave their lives for this same fight to gain their current status. Well there is still certainly individual prejudice in our country and in our world, there is most certainly not systemic racism. This is obvious as there are so many black Americans in sought-after positions across our country, including high offices politically. We have recently had a two-term black president and now have a black vice president.
We should all fight alongside one another to ensure that there are always equal rights for every American. But equal rights are not served by calling one group victims and the other group oppressors. Dr. Carson warns us to take heed that there is another driving force behind the current narrative and it is basically to destroy our country and all that has been achieved for all Americans. As he says, there is no greater country than America which is proven by the fact that our borders continue to be an issue…not to keep people in, but rather to limit the influx of those who would willingly risk their lives to become part of this great nation.
May our nation repent and once again affirm that we are “One Nation Under God.”
Here is wisdom worth learning. After reading this book, I looked up the word “wisdom” in the Bible. Everywhere I looked throughout Scripture, I read verses that could be applied to so much of what Ben Carson shares in this book. For instance: “But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.” James 3:17
Dr. Carson rightfully says that the current narrative espoused by the progressive left as well as the media and social media would have us believe that Black people in America are still repressed and unable to succeed to the same extent as white people. This is an insult to all that Black people have accomplished and achieved within the past 50 years in particular, and to the many white people who stood alongside them and even gave their lives for this same fight to gain their current status. Well there is still certainly individual prejudice in our country and in our world, there is most certainly not systemic racism. This is obvious as there are so many black Americans in sought-after positions across our country, including high offices politically. We have recently had a two-term black president and now have a black vice president.
We should all fight alongside one another to ensure that there are always equal rights for every American. But equal rights are not served by calling one group victims and the other group oppressors. Dr. Carson warns us to take heed that there is another driving force behind the current narrative and it is basically to destroy our country and all that has been achieved for all Americans. As he says, there is no greater country than America which is proven by the fact that our borders continue to be an issue…not to keep people in, but rather to limit the influx of those who would willingly risk their lives to become part of this great nation.
May our nation repent and once again affirm that we are “One Nation Under God.”
December 24, 2022
In Created Equal, Dr. Ben Carson highlights the historical implications of racism while tying in his life experiences. Being raised by a single mother in Detroit, Dr. Carson had numerous hurdles to overcome to get where he is today. He says on page 27 that "there are some people who perhaps have a steeper mountain to climb to achieve success, but that made them stronger and more capable of scaling the next mountain. With that realization, I stopped listening to the people who claimed the system was rigged against the success of black people. What does increase the chance of failure is a defeatist attitude associated with victimization."
The odds were stacked against Dr. Carson, but with this mentality- he would go on to become an incredibly gifted neurosurgeon who performed surgery on the most important organ within the human body, the brain. Does racism still exist today? Absolutely- racism is ultimately a sin problem, a problem man battles with the flesh, which means it will always be around in some capacity, but is racism better than it was 60 years ago? Absolutely. Dr. Carson has seen everything in this life, from racial segregation policies and race riots to African American Supreme Court Justices, an African American President & Vice President, and countless successful African American businesspeople and doctors.
I appreciate Dr. Carson's perspective in this book and his emphasis on the adverse effects of the "victimhood" mentality (which I think can apply to everyone) and the importance of education. On page 153, he was quoted, "Education can provide anyone from any circumstance with a tremendous advantage when it comes to climbing the ladder of opportunity in this nation. This is the reason why during slavery it was illegal to teach slaves to read. By keeping a group ignorant, it becomes much easier to control them."
These are just a couple of the takeaways I gathered from Dr. Carson's book, but I can assure you there are many more. I encourage you to pick up Created Equal at a bookstore near you.
"In the New Testament, the first book of John, chapter 4 says, "If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?" Page 184- Created Equal.
The odds were stacked against Dr. Carson, but with this mentality- he would go on to become an incredibly gifted neurosurgeon who performed surgery on the most important organ within the human body, the brain. Does racism still exist today? Absolutely- racism is ultimately a sin problem, a problem man battles with the flesh, which means it will always be around in some capacity, but is racism better than it was 60 years ago? Absolutely. Dr. Carson has seen everything in this life, from racial segregation policies and race riots to African American Supreme Court Justices, an African American President & Vice President, and countless successful African American businesspeople and doctors.
I appreciate Dr. Carson's perspective in this book and his emphasis on the adverse effects of the "victimhood" mentality (which I think can apply to everyone) and the importance of education. On page 153, he was quoted, "Education can provide anyone from any circumstance with a tremendous advantage when it comes to climbing the ladder of opportunity in this nation. This is the reason why during slavery it was illegal to teach slaves to read. By keeping a group ignorant, it becomes much easier to control them."
These are just a couple of the takeaways I gathered from Dr. Carson's book, but I can assure you there are many more. I encourage you to pick up Created Equal at a bookstore near you.
"In the New Testament, the first book of John, chapter 4 says, "If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?" Page 184- Created Equal.
August 11, 2022
A must read! Absolute must read!
“ America, we have a choice to make. Do we harp and complain and cause disruptions because of the things that have happened in the past? Or do we build on the foundation of righteousness, truths, and justice, with the goal of defeating the horrible injustices of America’s past?“ from the forward by Dr. Alvada C King
There are so many fantastic lines I highlighted. These are a few.
“As we enact policies that create dependency on the government, we are also extinguishing the American dream. “
“What actually is cruel is convincing people that they are victims and do not have control of their own destiny. “
“Before we suffer the loss of the precious freedoms that we currently enjoy, we must awaken to the slippery slopes of Marxist tendencies that are cropping up everywhere. “
“Perhaps what many of them fail to realize is that one of the first things that occurs in a socialist or communist regime is suppression of free speech and complete control of the press and all mechanisms of communication. “
“ America, we have a choice to make. Do we harp and complain and cause disruptions because of the things that have happened in the past? Or do we build on the foundation of righteousness, truths, and justice, with the goal of defeating the horrible injustices of America’s past?“ from the forward by Dr. Alvada C King
There are so many fantastic lines I highlighted. These are a few.
“As we enact policies that create dependency on the government, we are also extinguishing the American dream. “
“What actually is cruel is convincing people that they are victims and do not have control of their own destiny. “
“Before we suffer the loss of the precious freedoms that we currently enjoy, we must awaken to the slippery slopes of Marxist tendencies that are cropping up everywhere. “
“Perhaps what many of them fail to realize is that one of the first things that occurs in a socialist or communist regime is suppression of free speech and complete control of the press and all mechanisms of communication. “
April 9, 2023
I really appreciate seeing an individuals opinions and reasoning laid out, and I value Dr. Carson’s experiences and perspective. I think the layout of the book was a bit shotgun, as jumped into one topic after another my perspective of what the thesis of this book was jarringly changed several time. I can’t knock his content as it is obviously passionate and well researched, I can just say from a reader’s perspective, I would have preferred a sharper focus on a few issues and a more cohesive flow of information.
Do recommend for anyone wishing to examine the current political landscape from a voice that you would not hear on the traditional news or social platforms. Always a value to seek the unheard opinions and voices as much or more than the mainstream.
Do recommend for anyone wishing to examine the current political landscape from a voice that you would not hear on the traditional news or social platforms. Always a value to seek the unheard opinions and voices as much or more than the mainstream.
June 21, 2022
I AM A HUGE FAN OF BEN CARSON AND HIS STORY SO I WAS ANTICIPATING A GREAT READ FROM HIS LATEST BOOK AND IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT. WHAT IS TERRIBLY DISAPPOINTING IS HOW THE LIBERAL LEFT GO AFTER THIS MAN OF INTEGRITY AND ACCOMPLISHMENT JUST BECAUSE HE DOES NOT THINK LIKE THEM. HE MAKES SOME VERY GOOD POINTS ABOUT THE CRITICAL RACE EDUCATION IN OUR SCHOOLS AND THE WRONG PATH OUR POLITICIANS AND EDUCATORS ARE TAKING AS THEY TRY TO THRUST ONTO SOCIETY THEIR SOCIALISTIC AGENDA AND THE VICTOM METALITY THAT DOES NOBODY GOOD. WORTH A READ TO ANYONE THAT WANTS TO ACTUALLY HEAR SOME COMMONSENSE THOUGHTS OF RACE IN AMERICA AND THE FUTURE FOR THE NEXT GENERATIONS.
July 14, 2022
Although Dr. Carson may be preaching to the choir, his life story is amazing and his perspective on the critical issues facing our day should be read by all: slavery, black lives matter, critical race theory, 1619 project, defund the police, wokeism and cancel culture, systemic racism, importance of education and community outreach programs to overcome the disintegration of the family unit, entitlement and white supremacy, guilt and victimhood, big tech, etc.
A positive, uplifting book pointing out the many changes of racial progress in this country to date, and more we need to achieve as we treat people based on character and not their skin color.
A positive, uplifting book pointing out the many changes of racial progress in this country to date, and more we need to achieve as we treat people based on character and not their skin color.
June 3, 2022
Far from a religious person, and still I found this book incredibly sensible and moving. A great message for the youth. And a powerful response to the evils of CRT
August 27, 2022
I first gained respect for Dr. Carson years ago when my then elementary son did a report on him for school. Since then I have been aware of his run for the presidency in 2016 and that he was a conservative, but not much else. I considered him to be highly intelligent, wise and deeply spiritual, and while I knew I might not agree with everything he said, I was looking forward to learning from him and being challenged by his viewpoints.
While there were many thought-provoking moments where both Dr. Carson’s personal and public life experiences as a Black child and then man added credibility to his claims regarding race in America, there was one area where I feel his book was both misguided and made me lose a level of respect: the topic of public education. As a Christian public educator, I and my colleagues have been beleaguered this year by claims of “indoctrination,” “liberal activism,” “socialism,” and even “extremism.” As a primary target for some local attacks, I find this especially absurd. I still consider myself a moderate, evangelical Christian who has voted for Republicans and Democrats my whole life based on, I hope, “the content of their character.” To hear Dr. Carson’s voice add to the fear-based claims about CRT in schools was a slap in the face. I found myself thinking, “How many public educators has he talked to? Why can’t teachers - especially high school ones - educate on different sides of the race conversation if their content area aligns (e.g. English or Social studies) and allow all voices to be heard?” We are not indoctrinating. We are showing different sides and trying to teach students how to form their own opinions.
I imagine I will always value Dr. Carson’s opinion as a human and as a Christian, conservative Black man in America. However, I was definitely jaded by his seeming lack of the very “spirit of charity” he wrote about regarding education that only fuels the fight against public education by so many conservatives. I desperately wish he would take the high road and have more conversations with public educators like me instead of feeding the frenzy which only hurts America’s children by making their teachers more demonized and afraid.
While there were many thought-provoking moments where both Dr. Carson’s personal and public life experiences as a Black child and then man added credibility to his claims regarding race in America, there was one area where I feel his book was both misguided and made me lose a level of respect: the topic of public education. As a Christian public educator, I and my colleagues have been beleaguered this year by claims of “indoctrination,” “liberal activism,” “socialism,” and even “extremism.” As a primary target for some local attacks, I find this especially absurd. I still consider myself a moderate, evangelical Christian who has voted for Republicans and Democrats my whole life based on, I hope, “the content of their character.” To hear Dr. Carson’s voice add to the fear-based claims about CRT in schools was a slap in the face. I found myself thinking, “How many public educators has he talked to? Why can’t teachers - especially high school ones - educate on different sides of the race conversation if their content area aligns (e.g. English or Social studies) and allow all voices to be heard?” We are not indoctrinating. We are showing different sides and trying to teach students how to form their own opinions.
I imagine I will always value Dr. Carson’s opinion as a human and as a Christian, conservative Black man in America. However, I was definitely jaded by his seeming lack of the very “spirit of charity” he wrote about regarding education that only fuels the fight against public education by so many conservatives. I desperately wish he would take the high road and have more conversations with public educators like me instead of feeding the frenzy which only hurts America’s children by making their teachers more demonized and afraid.
December 14, 2022
Thank you to NetGalley and Center Street Publishing for allowing me to read this ARC version of Created Equal by Ben Carson. My thoughts are my own. Created Equal released May 17, 2022.
I first heard about Ben Carson several years back. I don’t exactly remember when, but it was around the time he was running for president. As one would expect, his name became known around the country, and what an enigma the left-facing media found him: an African American conservative, running as a conservative Republican.
I love his story. His is the true American Dream ideal, but more importantly, his speaks to the incredible blessings of God, granted to a man who has committed to following after Him.
The woke mob has moved to cancel anyone who speaks out against their divisive agenda. It’s safe to say that they will do the same for Dr. Carson’s book Created Equal because he moves to expose the nefarious intentions of politicians who have and continue to look to control the narrative and the masses.
Dr. Carson knows firsthand about discrimination and prejudice, just as he knows first hand the importance of becoming who God wants you to be and not allowing anyone to tell him otherwise. He knows the value of hard work and of creating a legacy. He is a role model to all of what you can do and who you can become.
In a generation that looks to cancel anyone who does not uphold and pander to the control of woke-ism, Dr. Carson’s book makes it clear who is at the helm of these radical ideals and how to step outside of the matrix.
While Created Equal speaks largely to the issue of race and discrimination in America, I think its wisdom is applicable to everyone looking to discover the way forward and how to return to Judeo-Christian values, to step outside of the predictable script and to unite as one people.
Time and again, Dr. Carson returns the reader to the fact that we are created in God’s image and are to be treated with dignity as one of God’s creatures.
It’s time we take back the narrative and live the lives God intended us to live.
Highly recommended.
I first heard about Ben Carson several years back. I don’t exactly remember when, but it was around the time he was running for president. As one would expect, his name became known around the country, and what an enigma the left-facing media found him: an African American conservative, running as a conservative Republican.
I love his story. His is the true American Dream ideal, but more importantly, his speaks to the incredible blessings of God, granted to a man who has committed to following after Him.
The woke mob has moved to cancel anyone who speaks out against their divisive agenda. It’s safe to say that they will do the same for Dr. Carson’s book Created Equal because he moves to expose the nefarious intentions of politicians who have and continue to look to control the narrative and the masses.
Dr. Carson knows firsthand about discrimination and prejudice, just as he knows first hand the importance of becoming who God wants you to be and not allowing anyone to tell him otherwise. He knows the value of hard work and of creating a legacy. He is a role model to all of what you can do and who you can become.
In a generation that looks to cancel anyone who does not uphold and pander to the control of woke-ism, Dr. Carson’s book makes it clear who is at the helm of these radical ideals and how to step outside of the matrix.
While Created Equal speaks largely to the issue of race and discrimination in America, I think its wisdom is applicable to everyone looking to discover the way forward and how to return to Judeo-Christian values, to step outside of the predictable script and to unite as one people.
Time and again, Dr. Carson returns the reader to the fact that we are created in God’s image and are to be treated with dignity as one of God’s creatures.
It’s time we take back the narrative and live the lives God intended us to live.
Highly recommended.
June 3, 2025
This is my first one star review. But this entire book is drivel and drab and drags on forever. There is very little of substance, it is filled with cliché phrases, and empty beliefs. If you’ve heard the man speak, save yourself from the monotony of this man’s writing, poor in style and worse in substance. I finish this in a day, only so I could talk with my Bookclub and know what utter horseshit others think and how poorer their minds are because of this book.
The main questions I would ask Ben Carson would be based on the title: Created Equal.
Are all men created equal? By what means are they equal? Who or what provides or provided for their equality?
If a man doesn’t work, in what ways is he still equal? Without providing a social utility, does a man maintain “equality”?
You said: “Health care may not be a right, but it certainly is a responsibility of a caring society.” What rights does a man possess, especially if he can’t work?
I would have like a whole lot more talk on the main issue that this kind of “pull yourself up by the bootstraps” contemporary Booker T. Washington. Personal responsibility. Social utility. Capitalism. Very little of the story is about governance, and little about solutions. He is rather content with the word that has benefited him. Empty, hollow words.
The main questions I would ask Ben Carson would be based on the title: Created Equal.
Are all men created equal? By what means are they equal? Who or what provides or provided for their equality?
If a man doesn’t work, in what ways is he still equal? Without providing a social utility, does a man maintain “equality”?
You said: “Health care may not be a right, but it certainly is a responsibility of a caring society.” What rights does a man possess, especially if he can’t work?
I would have like a whole lot more talk on the main issue that this kind of “pull yourself up by the bootstraps” contemporary Booker T. Washington. Personal responsibility. Social utility. Capitalism. Very little of the story is about governance, and little about solutions. He is rather content with the word that has benefited him. Empty, hollow words.
November 29, 2024
A great book to read in the midst of our culture war. A government seeking to maintain power at all cost with their lackey, the left-wing media, complicit in their endeavor. We are told to look at the external and ideological differences of those around us and not to look at the person we were created as by a Holy God. Sadly, the vast majority of the populace are "useful idiots" by not looking beyond the government propaganda and thinking for ourselves. If and when we do, we will see what is really happening around us. This book blows the lid off all this by educating the reader on what Project 1619 and Critical Race Theory really are: tools to divide and destroy the great melting pot called The United States of America. Please read this book before this country is turned into a Fascist or Socialist country.
September 16, 2022
I think I would like him in person if I met him but I disagree with much in this book. So strange to read so many of his personal examples of mistreatment based on race, even some involving his children, and yet he comes to the conclusion to not object and puts racism as something in the distant past. Much objecting to "CRT" which is purely political nonsense. He cites the story of Joseph in the Bible and his determination to be the best and most effective slave possible in order to advance. This seems to echo in Ben. I agree with positivity, seeking opportunity, and forgiveness but racism must be opposed. It's not totally over and its effects continue to shape lives in the present.
August 15, 2022
As a black, middle school teacher from Detroit, and teaching in Detroit, Dr. Ben Carson explains every aspect of what is going on in the world today. It is so wonderful and refreshing for me to look up to him, as he explains what is happening now- with the government, in schools, and how we must proceed. I’ve learned so much from this book, have shared it with my mom (she is the same age as Dr. Carson) and I am inspired as an educator to stay strong, as I keep my faith in God.
Thank you Dr. Ben Carson, for your wisdom.
Thank you Dr. Ben Carson, for your wisdom.
December 2, 2022
Excellent, must-read book for everyone who loves America, loves people and loves God.
Since this is a new book (2022), it brings to light and discusses many of the troubling things that have taken place in our country in the last couple of years.
This book gets you thinking about just WHERE our country is headed and how fast it is headed there.
I agree with the things Dr. Carson has elaborated on, but I know many would not. Perhaps those are the very ones who need to read and internalize his words.
Since this is a new book (2022), it brings to light and discusses many of the troubling things that have taken place in our country in the last couple of years.
This book gets you thinking about just WHERE our country is headed and how fast it is headed there.
I agree with the things Dr. Carson has elaborated on, but I know many would not. Perhaps those are the very ones who need to read and internalize his words.
February 17, 2023
“It’s not brain surgery” is a well known idiom to let someone know it shouldn’t be that hard. Here we have Dr Ben Carson and his wife Candy telling us how race relations should not be so hard. Their book is written on a reading level most all can comprehend with a few big words thrown in to remind you how smart he is. I like their review of historical race issues in America and reminders how much progress has been made; along with straightforward plans to keep making progress. Secular progressives will hate this book and give it “no stars”.
February 4, 2024
A family member suggested it so I read it. It's pretty awful. It's not very old but already severely dated. It's really just a series of anecdotes saying we shouldn't worry too much about racism. Not even sure what his point is. The last chapter was the worst. It's called "Moving Forward" and he complains about his mistreatment by the media and touts Singapore (Singapore?!) as an example of how we can help cure our divisiveness as a country. Then he just lists a bunch of other issues that he says are more important than race relations.
July 22, 2022
Dr. Carson uses examples from personal experience, current events, and history to share his views on not only racism but how, we as Americans, can learn to live together. The book is well written and easy to read but takes a bit of time because thinking about what Dr. Carson wrote is well worth it. I admire Dr. Carson and hope many people, especially young people take the time to read this book.
July 25, 2022
One of the best book I've read in years. I just stumbled into it at Wal-Mart, of all places.
Dr. Carson shares his upbringing, in Detroit, through the present. He makes the reader stop and think about what you see in the media versus reality. He also presents hopeful suggestions for the future.
I read this in two sittings because it was so captivating.
If more people felt like this, we'd have far future social problems in our society.
Thank you, Doctor Carson!
Dr. Carson shares his upbringing, in Detroit, through the present. He makes the reader stop and think about what you see in the media versus reality. He also presents hopeful suggestions for the future.
I read this in two sittings because it was so captivating.
If more people felt like this, we'd have far future social problems in our society.
Thank you, Doctor Carson!
September 20, 2022
This was a terrific book. Dr. Ben Carson writes in a way that is both comprehensive as well as easy to read and understand.
So many of the 'racism problems' the left would want us to believe about our United States of America are not really problems at all, just progressivism at its worst.
This book should be required reading for all students, middle school and high school, in an effort to thwart the indoctrination/socialism the left is unabashedly perpetuating in our country.
So many of the 'racism problems' the left would want us to believe about our United States of America are not really problems at all, just progressivism at its worst.
This book should be required reading for all students, middle school and high school, in an effort to thwart the indoctrination/socialism the left is unabashedly perpetuating in our country.
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