We all want to change the world

We all want to change the world My journey through social justice movements from the 1960s to today

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, 1947-

Book - 2025

"For many, it can feel like change takes too long, and it might seem that we have not moved very far. But political activist Kareem Abdul-Jabbar believes that public protest is a vital part of affecting change, even if that change doesn't come "right now." In We All Want to Change the World, he examines the activism of people of all ages, ethnicities, and socio-economic backgrounds that helped change America, documenting events from the Free Speech Movement through the movement for civil rights, the fight for women's and LGBTQ rights, and, of course, the protests against the Vietnam War. At a time in our history when we are witnessing protests across campuses, within the labor movement, and following the killing of ...George Floyd, Abdul-Jabbar reminds us that protests are a lifeblood of our history: "Protest movements, even peaceful ones, are never popular at first... But there is a reason protest gatherings have been so frequent throughout history: They are effective. The United States exists because of them." Part history lesson and part personal reminiscences of his own activism, We All Want to Change the World will resonate with anyone who recognizes the need for social change and is willing to do the work to make it happen"--

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Subjects
Abdul-Jabbar, Kareem, > 1947-
Political activists > Biography.
Social justice > History.
Protest movements > History.
Activistes > Biographies.
Justice sociale > Histoire.
Informational works.
Autobiographies.
Genres
Informational works
Autobiographies
Published
New York : Crown [2025]
Language
English
Main Author
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, 1947- (author)
Other Authors
Raymond Obstfeld, 1952- (author)
Edition
First edition
Physical Description
306 pages ; 24 cm
ISBN
9780593735107
  • Prologue A Change Is Gonna Come: Sure, but What Exactly Does Change Mean?
  • Chapter 1. The Free Speech Movement: "I'm Gonna Say It Now"
  • Chapter 2. The Civil Rights Movement: "Make Me Wanna Holler"
  • Chapter 3. The Anti-War Movement: "War. What Is It Good For?"
  • Chapter 4. The Women's Liberation Movement: "R-E-S-P-E-C-T"
  • Chapter 5. The Gay Liberation Movement: "Born This Way"
  • Epilogue Do Protests Even Matter Anymore?
  • Acknowledgments
Review by Booklist Review

Writer and retired NBA star Abdul-Jabbar (Coach Wooden and Me, 2017) delivers a compelling book that seamlessly blends his decades-long basketball career and his long-standing dedication to social justice. Along the way, he meditates on the history of social justice movements and his first-hand experience fighting for equality from the 1960s to today. Drawing on extensive research in addition to his lived experience, Abdul-Jabbar dedicates each chapter to a different movement--free speech, civil rights, antiwar, women's liberation, gay liberation--and provides little-known details about what went on behind the scenes. His analyses of past struggles highlight how these efforts laid the groundwork for modern activism while encouraging readers to continue the fight against injustice. Fans of books by athletes-turned-activists, such as Tommie Smith's Silent Gesture (2007) and John Carlos' The John Carlos Story (2011), will enjoy Abdul-Jabbar's insightful historical account of social justice movements and his inspiring call to get involved and make a difference.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Abdul-Jabbar is a legend on the court and on library shelves, and readers will be excited to read his first-hand take on continuously relevant recent history.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Basketball legend and activist Abdul-Jabbar (On the Shoulders of Giants) provides an inspiring survey of the protest movements of the 1960s and '70s. Rejecting the notion that protests are "relics," Abdul-Jabbar shows how protesting has been continuously important since that era and draws parallels between past and present by also spotlighting later, less studied movements and protests like the 1997 Million Woman March, which "encouraged Black women to seek self-fulfillment." The book is best when focused on Abdul-Jabbar's own vivid reminisces. These include the two events that kick-started his political awakening in 1964--"meeting Dr. King in person and being inadvertently caught up in the Harlem riot"--and his participation in the 1967 Cleveland Summit, "a gathering of mostly Black athletes... tasked with choosing whether to support Muhammad Ali's defiance of the draft," which he calls a "defining experience." His humor, even in the face of death threats ("I've become an all-you-can-hate buffet"), and honesty, including about when his advocacy fell short ("I was... a passive sexist accepting the inequality of women as inevitable"), are refreshing. Throughout, Abul-Jabbar makes a persuasive case for protest's long-term efficacy, even when change is not immediate ("To protest is to play the long game"). The result is a powerful exhortation to take to the streets. (May)

(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Kirkus Book Review

Insights into social movements from an NBA legend. When Abdul-Jabbar met Martin Luther King Jr. in 1964, he was "a skinny, seventeen-year-old basketball player" who never believed he could ever make a difference in the fight against racism. Yet that encounter proved crucial in his lifelong awakening to many faces of social injustice and the power of fighting back through protest. Assisted by longtime co-author Obstfeld, Abdul-Jabbar examines not only the Civil Rights Movement but also those that emerged alongside it that supported gay rights, women's liberation, environmental protection, and an end to the Vietnam War. The greatest lesson he offers from his many years of activism is that no matter how urgent the need for change, "nothing happens right now." Like the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act nearly 100 years after the end of the Civil War, change is slow and incremental. Yet even as society evolves through commitment to social betterment, Abdul-Jabbar also admits that discrimination and unfairness--which prompted the Black Lives Matter and #MeToo movements--stubbornly persist. But Abdul-Jabbar is never without hope. Throughout the book, he references his own personal evolution, which took him from dismissal of the women's movement and a prejudice toward homosexuality to a social activism premised in the idea that "no one is free unless everyone is free." With wisdom, compassion, and humility, this book reminds readers that the ideals of equality and justice are works in progress that each generation is tasked with transforming into reality. A timely reflection on protest movements that also chronicles how a beloved champion came to political consciousness. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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