“The Debt”
By Randall Robinson (Dutton; 262 pages; $23.95)
The founder and president of TransAfrica, Randall Robinson, argues in The Debt that the United States will not bridge its racial divide until citizens come to terms with the harm inflicted on African-Americans by more than two centuries of slavery and the century of legal racial discrimination that followed. In Robinson’s opinion, this means reparations. Robinson’s provocative treatise should, at the very least, serve as a springboard for a serious dialogue on the subject.
“The Parent’s Guide to Protecting Your Children in Cyberspace”
By Parry Aftab (McGraw-Hill; 330 pages; $12.95, paper)
New Jersey lawyer Parry Aftab is frightened by the dangers children face on the Internet, but she is also aware of the many benefits the Net has to offer and is a fierce defender of free speech to boot. Thus, her common-sense, readable guide seeks to shield children from harm by empowering parents, not the censors. To deprive your children of the Internet, Aftab believes, is foolish and unnecessary. She offers advice on, among other subjects, establishing rules on Internet behavior for your kids, how to uncover the Net’s hidden dangers, and how to work with schools on making in-school Internet use safe.
