Local geek watches Ali G, global economy on verge of total collapse

It's been almost a week since I was fired from my job. What I'm finding odd is the lack of the almost total panic I expected myself to be in. Not having to work is a bit of a novelty for me; I've been employed since I was sixteen. The last time I didn't have a job is when I wasn't legally employable. Somewhat irresponsibly, I've been using this as a bit of a holiday and an excuse to catch up on books I've been meaning to finish. That and watching Ali G.
One that I've just finished was a memoir entitled "Blood done sign my name".The author's name is Timothy Tyson. He's a professor of Afro-American studies at the University of Wisconsin, and the memoir focuses on a racist murder that happened in his town when he was ten years old. For allegedly making a flirtatious comment to a white woman, a black Vietnam vet named Henry Marrow was chased down and murdered in broad daylight by the woman's husband, his cousin and the husband's father. Sadly, but perhaps predictably (This took place in North Carolina in the seventies)none of the men who involved were found guilty. Despite the fact that they had murdered a man while he was begging for his life, they hadn't even been arrested until the following day.
What made the book interesting for me the author's personal stake in this story. Tyson's father was a liberal Methodist preacher who constantly challenged his congregation on the issue of race, and got involved with a lot of the early protests about the obvious injustice that was surrounding the trial, as well as the larger problem of racism in the community and American society. I found it pretty refreshing to read about a preacher who challenged the community's prejudices, as opposed to catering to them (is that possible?). Tyson's father was left behind though, as the movement became more radical and viewed even white liberals with suspicion. Due to the problem of endemic racism, white liberals were in some circles considered to be even worse than out-and-out racists. The thinking went that while a racist would just say "I don't want them coming through the same doors as white people", the liberal would set up a committee to determine what exact door black people would be allowed to enter by. Tyson also refuses to give us solace with the idea that it was just a bunch of hillbilly rednecks that opposed the civil rights movement. He cites statistics that shows that the majority of people who identified as being Caucasian felt (before Dr. King's assassination)that the civil rights movement was going too far, too fast. This is really an interesting book and I'd encourage any of you who are interested in racism, religion and southern history (particular bugbears of mine, to be honest) to check it out. The writing is occasionally a little clunky and precious, but try not to let that get in the way of the way of this really interesting, tragic story.
I'll let you know more about Ali G once I've finished absorbing it all. The Borat character is inspired.