Ta-Nehisi Coates Powerful Writer

For many years now, Ta-Nehisi Coates has been one of America’s most thoughtful and compelling voices. His writing is both well-researched and provocative, revealing the truth behind the history in America about race and inequality.

In 2014, “The Case for Reparations,” was published by the Atlantic and widely distributed to new audiences. Then his second book was released and everyone began to take notice of this literary genius. The book “Between the World and Me,” is an insightful, well structured and forcefully argued work that navigates the many complexities that existed in America through a story of a father and son.

Many have called Coates' work amazing, comparing him to James Baldwin. Even the MacArthur Foundation recognized his brilliant work and awarded him a “Genius Grant”. Not to mention the fact that he got the National Book Award for the best nonfiction in 2016 and was nominated for a Phi Beta Kappa book award. Recently, he was named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world.

Coates first name Ta-Nehisi was given to him by his father, who was a former Black Panther, librarian, publisher and Vietnam War veteran. Ta-Nehisi is an Egyptian name that means Nubia, or loosely translated to mean “land of the black”. Nubia is a region that is located along the Nile River, which is found in present-day southern Egypt and northern Sudan. This is a fitting name for the American journalist, writer, and educator Ta-Nehisi Coates.