Ibram X. Kendi

Exhilarating and epic.

I usually end up rolling my eyes at "everything you thought you knew was wrong" style books, because - no matter how well-intentioned - there comes a point when it's hard to believe that out of every human on earth, we've all been going the wrong way and only the Messiah-like author can save us. But this is actually not Kendi's aim. Instead he draws on a rich vein of historical sources and some impeccable research to explain the points-of-view of those who already knew show more what we should be doing, contrasting it with his own development as a young dark-skinned black man growing up in the USA, filled with his own biases, bigotries, and fears. We emerge from the final chapter not, perhaps, with an answer on what we need to do to solve the impacts of racism in our society, but certainly with an awareness of innovative, powerful, and practical tools at our disposal.

One caveat for international readers like myself: this book is not a "beginner's guide" in any sense - to the problems of racism, to sociology, to history. It was written by a highly-educated, intellectual, deeply progressive American who writes for The Atlantic and he assumes his audience are highly-educated, intellectual, deeply progressive Americans who probably read The Atlantic. As a result, I got a bit lost occasionally when American history and slang played major roles in some chapters, or when the discussion veered off into modern academic theories on race and discrimination. (Kendi himself acknowledges that he doesn't use some of these phrases when talking to laypeople!) That's not a complaint - after all, this is an American book for Americans; I'm the problem child for reading it in my far-flung corner of the earth.

Yet I don't say that to put you off the book. It still has a lot to say on how we process our individual biases, instilled in us over a lifetime, and I will be reflecting upon it for a long time to come. show less

This not-a-history-book gives just enough history to trace the evolution of race and racism in the United States (and elsewhere) and connect it to present-day issues. Kendi and Reynolds describe three types of people - segregationists, assimilationists, and antiracists - and identify a few individuals, past and present, who have had each stance.

Quotes/notes

Segregationists and assimilationists both think Black people are to blame for racial iniquity. (xii)

Antiracists say there is nothing show more wrong or right about Black people and everything wrong with racism...racism is the problem in need of changing, not Black people. The antiracists try to transform racism. The assimilationists try to transform Black people. The segregationists try to get away from Black people. (xiii)

1688 Germantown Petition Against Slavery (24)

Metacomet, a Native American war leader, was killed....Puritans cut up his body (like...savages?)...and paraded his remains around Plymouth. (25)

Nathaniel Bacon declared liberty for all servants and Blacks, because...they were the same class and should be united against the true enemy - rich Whites. But [Governor Berkeley] knew if Blacks and Whites joined forces, he'd be done....[so he turned Black and White against each other by creating White privileges]. (26-27)

New set of racist codes...
5. All property owned by a slave is sold, which of course contributes to Black poverty.
6. White indentured servants who were freed are awarded fifty acres of property, of course contributing to White prosperity. (34-35)

Britain had ended slavery (at least in England, but not in the British colonies).
America refused to do so.
Britain looked at America as...dumb.
America said, "Mind your business, Britain."
Britain said, "You ARE my business, America."
America said, "Well, we can change that."
--> 1776 (55)

Three-Fifths Compromise (60)

August 1791 Haitian Revolution (61)

"Uplift Suasion" theory: Black people couldn't be accepted as themselves...they had to fit into some kind of White mold to deserve their freedom.
Make yourself small/unthreatening/the same/safe/quiet/to make White people comfortable with your existence. (65-66)

Lincoln was speaking out of...THREE sides of his mouth. 1. He wanted slavery gone. 2. He didn't necessarily think Black people should have equal rights. 3. the end of slavery would bolster the poor White economy. (100-101)

Turned out, freedom in America was like quicksand. It looked solid until a Black person tried to stand on it. Then it became clear that it was a sinkhole. (108)

Shelley v. Kraemer, 1948: courts could not enforce Whites-only real estate contracts in northern cities to keep out migrants and stop housing desegregation. --> White flight (158)

Brown v. Board of Education, 1954: racial segregation in schools was unconstitutional (159)

Civil Rights Act of 1964: On paper it would mean that discrimination on the basis of race was illegal. But what it actually meant was that White people...could then argue that everything was now fine....now things were equal....It meant they'd argue...that Black people's circumstances are caused solely by themselves, and if they just worked harder and got educations, they'd succeed. It meant they'd completely ignore the hundreds of years of head starts White people had in America. (172)

What Stokely Carmichael meant by Black Power: Black people owning and controlling their own neighborhoods and futures, free of white supremacy.
What (racist) White people (and media) heard: Black Supremacy. (181-182)

Audre Lorde...pushed back against the idea that she, as a Black person, woman, and lesbian, was expected to educate White people, men, and/or heterosexuals in order for them to recognize her humanity. (198)

1986, Reagan's second term, Anti-Drug Abuse Act gave a 5-year minimum sentence for a drug dealer or user caught with 5 grams of crack...users and dealers of powder cocaine had to be caught with 500 grams to receive the same 5-year sentence.
Results...Mass incarceration of Black people, even though White people and Black people were selling and using drugs at similar rates. (205)

According to Reagan and racists, it was all Black people's fault. Not the racist policies that jammed Black people up. (207)

Clinton's Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act ("three strikes" law) (217)

The Bell Curve (Hernstein & Murray) and standardized testing (220)

Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (220)

It convinced a new generation of Americans that irresponsible Black people, not racism, caused the racial inequities. (221)

Science says the races are biologically equal. So, if they're not equal in society, the only reason why can be racism. (229)

[The construct of race] is not woven into people as much as it's woven into policy that people adhere to and believe is truth. (245)

...We...have to fight against performance and lean into participation. (253)

We can't attack a thing we don't know. (253) show less

Ibram X. Kendi interweaves his own many-years journey from unrealized racism into a less-racist self with historical evidence, modern data, and a thoughtful set of definitions and prescriptions for action that diverge strikingly from current race canon. Two major departures: although Kendi's racism is still inherently about power, he rejects the notion that racism is definitionally only available to White people, and his call to action writes off the role of education in driving change. In show more his view, racism is driven by the self-interest of the parties in power, what is "common sense" changes only after public policies have changed, and education/donations/demonstrations are ways to lull individuals into feeling better in the same world and will never drive societal improvements.

The personal framing device helps humanize and lower the barrier to the undertaking, and while I disagree with some particulars and the underlying frame of strong dichotomies and definitions, the thrust of his argument is highly coherent and it rings true to me. Four main reactions:

1) Kendi's reading of racism and its interrelationship with power is shockingly queer. These are arguments that I've never seen raised in discussions of race, but are extremely familiar from queer criticisms of capitalism. (There's absolutely synergy here. There's also likely a couple excellent papers available in the unpacking of why these criticisms seem so new, why they're resonating now, and the origin of their strength.)

2) I loved him tying everything back to in-group/out-group bias. People attributing the bad actions of their out-groups as a characteristic of the group and positive actions of the out-group as a characteristic of the individual person (and the inverse for in-groups) is key to all sorts of group dynamics.

3) I find many layers of irony in how many sources are sending the message to White folks that they should start by educating themselves before jumping into practice, and suggesting this book as a possible place to start, when the final conclusion of this book is that while education might drive local change for individuals, it won't actually drive major or particularly useful change. And at the same time, Kendi wrote a book, which is not exactly a way to say "hey, I believe that helping educate individuals is a poor way to spur change".

4) There's a bunch of places where the logic doesn't quite hang together or seems stretched too thin or can't be satisfactorily pulled against exactly the single straight line to reach the endpoints that Kendi seems to want it to reach. To my mind this suggests the arguments still aren't fully wrought, because there is a truth undergirding the not-quite-perfectly-whittled ideas that I find undeniable.

There's a sizeable amount to think about here, especially once the book starts to take on what you consider truth (wherever that occurs). Although it didn't blow my mind, I am glad of the time I spent engaging How to be an Antiracist, and although I think it will in turn be surpassed, I would recommend it without question for anyone wanting to think more concretely about race and what might drive greater racial equity in 2020 and the near future. show less

I recently added this book to our grade 4/5 school library. Written in a way children can understand, it helps explain the complicated history of racism. I didn't realize how sad I would feel after finishing it. In under 150 pages, it demonstrated how little has changed over time. It blows my mind that in 2021 we still have those who think someone's skin color is an indicator of intelligence or morality. I have students of various races, nationalities, religions, and gender identities. show more Sometimes they get along and sometimes they fight, like all kids, but it's about kid stuff like who took an extra turn or who cut in line, not about their color or where they're from or what they practice or who they are. Why do some adults continue to perpetrate racism? It breaks my heart.

One minor quibble as a librarian. There are a number of stories listed in chapter 11 as having included racial stereotypes. I didn't see the connection in all of them, such as Peter Pan and Curious George. Maybe I'm just not well-informed enough, but if I don't understand what's racist about the titles listed, children won't. Perhaps a parenthetical note after each one would help in a future edition.

This book is a kids' version adapted from Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You . I would highly recommend adults reading that alongside their children reading Stamped (For Kids). And then TALK. As the authors warn:

"Scrolling will never be enough. Reposting will never be enough. Hashtagging will never be enough. Because hatred has a way of convincing us that half love is whole." show less