I Take My Coffee Black: Reflections on Tupac, Musical Theater, Faith, and Being Black in America

Tyler Merritt shares his experiences as a Black man in America through personal stories, humor, and reflection. His viral videos "Before You Call the Cops" and "Walking While Black" brought attention to his central idea: knowing someone fosters empathy, understanding, and compassion. Merritt has appeared on Jimmy Kimmel and Sports Illustrated and was profiled in the New York Times. In this book, Merritt recounts stories from his life, including growing up in a multicultural community where he didn't always feel welcome, leaving sports for musical theater, a transformative encounter with faith involving a Triple F.A.T. Goose jacket, and attending a small Bible college in Santa Cruz for its theater program. Throughout these narratives, he addresses privilege, the historical legacies of lynching and sharecropping, and encoded racism embedded in American society. Merritt weaves together wit, insight, and humor to examine Black manhood in America, aiming to build the empathy needed to address racial injustice.