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anjasshelf's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Hate crime, Murder, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Ableism, Classism, Colonisation, Xenophobia, Bullying, Racism, and Violence
sometimes_ready's review
5.0
Graphic: Racism
Minor: Sexism and Ableism
alyssa_s10's review
5.0
Graphic: Racism, Racial slurs, and Police brutality
Moderate: Bullying, Cultural appropriation, and Ableism
Minor: Emotional abuse
puttingwingsonwords's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Racism
Moderate: Ableism, Bullying, Classism, Body shaming, Misogyny, Cultural appropriation, Fatphobia, and Racial slurs
anniereads221's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Gun violence, Police brutality, Hate crime, Child death, Classism, Racial slurs, Bullying, Transphobia, Sexual assault, Homophobia, Racism, Ableism, Sexism, and Misogyny
skudiklier's review against another edition
5.0
So, that said: I feel like a lot of books on race/racism and related topics (policing, the criminal punishment system, racial justice) often lean towards either A) being too broad and not challenging enough, so that (white) people can feel like they understand without ever being made to feel uncomfortable, or B) starting from a place of understanding farther along in the process so that they maybe end up preaching to the choir a bit, because very few people will fully read them who weren't already in agreement. There are benefits to this and I'm not saying books in that second category aren't necessary and useful--they very much are. But still, I wouldn't recommend them to my older family members, for instance, or to people who want to understand but just don't get it yet.
This book, in my (again, definitely white) opinion, strikes a really good balance between those two sides. It very clearly and unapologetically lays out hard truths and things that might make readers uncomfortable, especially white readers who haven't had to think much about their own racism or complicity in white supremacy. However, it also argues so well a lot of the common points people make. Like, there are some people close to me who I've had conversations with about race where I've ended up frustrated because I couldn't get them to understand what I was trying to say. And this book, again and again, explained things in a way I feel like those people would actually get. I want every white person I've tried to discuss race with (and came away frustrated) to read this book. It's obviously not going to fix everything, but it might get them to a similar page where we can then start to talk about more actions and solutions, rather than getting bogged down in things like why white people can't say the N word or why focusing on addressing class on its own won't solve racism.
tl;dr, So You Want to Talk About Race is full of good, clear, solid explanations for people who are learning this for the first time, or may feel defensive or disinclined to believe basic truths about race and racism.
There are also lots of examples of actionable ways to use privilege for good, help make conversations about race easier, etc. This book is useful for people at many stages of knowledge and experience with racial issues and theories, and I'd recommend it to anyone interested, but especially white people.
Graphic: Racial slurs, Xenophobia, Police brutality, and Racism
Moderate: Classism, Murder, Toxic relationship, Ableism, Bullying, Hate crime, Islamophobia, Misogyny, and Slavery
Minor: Homophobia, Transphobia, and War
erikabee's review
5.0
Moderate: Addiction, Classism, Murder, Toxic friendship, Ableism, Violence, Xenophobia, Bullying, Cultural appropriation, Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Police brutality, Racial slurs, and Racism
jasminrain's review against another edition
4.5
While it doesn't necessarily give that much new information to people that are familiar with the topic, I really really loved how the book was structured. Each chapter starts with the author's personal experiences on the given topic and moves then to discuss the structural basis of the problem and finally how to discuss about it. As someone who really struggles with confrontating people (about any topic), I found that to be really useful! The book is also very accessible and all the concepts, terms and phenomena are explained really well so I'd definitely recommend it for those who are new to the topic.
Graphic: Hate crime, Sexism, Slavery, Classism, Cultural appropriation, Emotional abuse, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Murder, and Racism
Moderate: Religious bigotry, Ableism, and Violence
Minor: Sexual harassment
alisazhup's review
5.0
Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Racial slurs, Racism, and Police brutality
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Slavery, Ableism, and Transphobia