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angryglitterwitch's review
5.0
Fave quote: "The history of racist ideas is the history of powerful policymakers erecting racist policies out of self-interest, then producing racist ideas to defend and rationalize the inequitable effects of their policies, while everyday people consume those racist ideas, which in turn sparks ignorance and hate."
This book was a great mix of broad and personal, and also challenging in the best way. Highly recommend, I learnt a lot. You can definitely tell Kendi is a lecturer - the book is super clearly written and straightforward, which was helpful for my brain fog. The chapters are short but really meaty so it's really accessible from an academic book.
Heads up that as well as the content about medical racism that you'd expect, Kendi also discusses serious illness in the last couple of chapters, which was unexpectedly triggering for me. Spoonie friends go carefully but still definitely read it.
This book was a great mix of broad and personal, and also challenging in the best way. Highly recommend, I learnt a lot. You can definitely tell Kendi is a lecturer - the book is super clearly written and straightforward, which was helpful for my brain fog. The chapters are short but really meaty so it's really accessible from an academic book.
Heads up that as well as the content about medical racism that you'd expect, Kendi also discusses serious illness in the last couple of chapters, which was unexpectedly triggering for me. Spoonie friends go carefully but still definitely read it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness
therainbowshelf's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
4.5
"Americans have long been trained to see the deficiencies of people rather than policy. It's a pretty easy mistake to make: People are in our faces. Policies are distant. We are particularly poor at seeing the policies lurking behind the struggles of people.”
Ibram Kendi takes a good hard look at racism in this book. He discussed how racism tries to turn the word "racist" into an epethet so racist people can be mad about being called racist, and speaks at length about fighting racist policies that create racial inequity. He also spends quite a lot of time examining his own racism (and other things like homophobia) in his past endeavors to fight racism and how he's learned from that. I recommend this read, but it may be hard for anyone who's lives have been touched by cancer (discussed in the ending).
Ibram Kendi takes a good hard look at racism in this book. He discussed how racism tries to turn the word "racist" into an epethet so racist people can be mad about being called racist, and speaks at length about fighting racist policies that create racial inequity. He also spends quite a lot of time examining his own racism (and other things like homophobia) in his past endeavors to fight racism and how he's learned from that. I recommend this read, but it may be hard for anyone who's lives have been touched by cancer (discussed in the ending).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Chronic illness, and Racism
Moderate: Gun violence, Hate crime, Sexism, and Misogyny
Minor: Biphobia, Homophobia, Transphobia, Xenophobia, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Racial slurs, Police brutality, and Forced institutionalization
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