eBook
English language
Published June 20, 2019 by One World.
Antiracism is a transformative concept that reorients and reenergizes the conversation about racism—and, even more fundamentally, points us toward liberating new ways of thinking about ourselves and each other. At its core, racism is a powerful system that creates false hierarchies of human value; its warped logic extends beyond race, from the way we regard people of different ethnicities or skin colors to the way we treat people of different sexes, gender identities, and body types. Racism intersects with class and culture and geography and even changes the way we see and value ourselves. In How to Be an Antiracist, Kendi takes readers through a widening circle of antiracist ideas—from the most basic concepts to visionary possibilities—that will help readers see all forms of racism clearly, understand their poisonous consequences, and work to oppose them in our systems and in ourselves.
Kendi weaves an electrifying combination of ethics, history, law, …
Antiracism is a transformative concept that reorients and reenergizes the conversation about racism—and, even more fundamentally, points us toward liberating new ways of thinking about ourselves and each other. At its core, racism is a powerful system that creates false hierarchies of human value; its warped logic extends beyond race, from the way we regard people of different ethnicities or skin colors to the way we treat people of different sexes, gender identities, and body types. Racism intersects with class and culture and geography and even changes the way we see and value ourselves. In How to Be an Antiracist, Kendi takes readers through a widening circle of antiracist ideas—from the most basic concepts to visionary possibilities—that will help readers see all forms of racism clearly, understand their poisonous consequences, and work to oppose them in our systems and in ourselves.
Kendi weaves an electrifying combination of ethics, history, law, and science with his own personal story of awakening to antiracism. This is an essential work for anyone who wants to go beyond the awareness of racism to the next step: contributing to the formation of a just and equitable society. (source)
I wanted to challenge my ideas of what tolerance really meant...and am I glad I did. Many beliefs I held, things I said, and feelings I experienced were unpacked & aggressively dismantled. If anything, this book has made me realize how long of a journey tolerance is, and how none of us are perfect. It's something I believe everyone should read as a bare minimum to tackling racism.
The author presents a steady, clear, additive set of definitions and considerations of racism. These are braided with personal and historical stories that illustrate, place in context, and humanize the drier, sober definitions that mark each new set.
When I began, it seemed straightforward, but as it built, as more was folded in, as the author stepped through things I had wondered or left unresolved in my own understanding, I felt more engaged.
Perhaps some punches pulled on the chapter on class? Perhaps the suddenness of the parallels with cancer not as compelling to me as, surely, it must be for the author and many others?
