No Future in This Country: The Prophetic Pessimism of Bishop Henry
McNeal Turner is a history of the career of Bishop Henry McNeal
Turner (1834–1915), specifically focusing on his work from 1896 to
1915. Drawing on the copious amount of material from Turner’s
speeches, editorial, and open and private letters, Andre E. Johnson
tells a story of how Turner provided rhetorical leadership during a
period in which America defaulted on many of the rights and
privileges gained for African Americans during Reconstruction. Unlike
many of his contemporaries during this period, Turner did not opt to
proclaim an optimistic view of race relations. Instead, Johnson
argues that Turner adopted a prophetic persona of a pessimistic
prophet who not only spoke truth to power but, in so doing, also
challenged and pushed African Americans to believe in themselves.
At this time in his
life, Turner had no confidence in American institutions or that the
American people would live up to the promises outlined in their
sacred documents. While he argued that emigration was the only way
for African Americans to retain their “personhood” status, he
also would come to believe that African Americans would never
emigrate to Africa. He argued that many African Americans were so
oppressed and so stripped of agency because they were surrounded by
continued negative assessments of their personhood that belief in
emigration was not possible. Turner’s position limited his
rhetorical options, but by adopting a pessimistic prophetic voice
that bore witness to the atrocities African Americans faced, Turner
found space for his oratory, which reflected itself within the lament
tradition of prophecy.