How Not to Get Shot: And Other Advice From White People

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A GOODREADS CHOICE AWARDS FINALIST

"Hilarious yet soul-shaking." —Black Enterprise

The fearless comedy legend—one of the “Original Kings of Comedy”—hilariously breaks down the wisdom of white people, advice that has been killing black folks in America for four hundred years and counting.

200 years ago, white people told black folks, “‘I suggest you pick the cotton if you don’t like getting whipped.” Today, it’s “comply with police orders if you don’t want to get shot.” Now comedian/activist D. L. Hughley–one the Original Kings of Comedy–confronts and remixes white people’s “advice” in this “hilarious examination of the current state of race relations in the United States” (Publishers Weekly).

In America, a black man is three times more likely to be killed in encounters with police than a white guy. If only he had complied with the cop, he might be alive today, pundits say in the aftermath of the latest shooting of an unarmed black man. Or, Maybe he shouldn’t have worn that hoodie … or, moved more slowly … not been out so late … Wait, why are black people allowed to drive, anyway?

This isn’t a new phenomenon. White people have been giving “advice” to black folks for as long as anyone can remember, telling them how to pick cotton, where to sit on a bus, what neighborhood to live in, when they can vote, and how to wear our pants. Despite centuries of whites’ advice, it seems black people still aren’t listening, and the results are tragic.

Now, at last, activist, comedian, and New York Times bestselling author D. L. Hughley offers How Not to Get Shot, an illustrated how-to guide for black people, full of insight from white people, translated by one of the funniest black dudes on the planet. In these pages you will learn how to act, dress, speak, walk, and drive in the safest manner possible. You also will finally understand the white mind. It is a book that can save lives. Or at least laugh through the pain.

Black people: Are you ready to not get shot! White people: Do you want to learn how to help the cause? Let’s go!

“A satirical but apt addition to the culture’s fraught conversation about race.” - New York Times Book Review, “New & Noteworthy”

“A biting satire about racism. ... A sharp-tongued truth-teller.” - Huffington Post

“Legendary comedian DL Hughley’s provocative commentary on race and police brutality.” - GQ

“Hughley pulls no punches in this caustic, maddening, and hilarious examination of the current state of race relations in the United States. … Highlight[s] not only police brutality against African-Americans but also the casual racism of those who remain indifferent to or dismissive of the problem. Hughley is frequently funny in these pages, but he’s not playing solely for laughs. … Hughley’s well-honed humor is filled with uncomfortable truths.” - Publishers Weekly

“Hughley pulls no punches in this caustic, maddening, and hilarious examination of the current state of race relations in the United States.” - Publishers Weekly

“In his hilarious yet soul-shaking truth-telling book, Hughley touches on politics, race, and life as a black American as only he can.” - Black Enterprise, A “MUST-READ BOOK FOR 2019”

“Hilarious. … It might be the most important book you buy this year.” - Philadelphia Tribune