Reviews tagging 'Antisemitism'

Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson

51 reviews

tarines316's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

Wilkerson provides an in depth analysis of America’s caste system and the history that has lead us to where we are. She uses personal stories and specific examples to illustrate the elements of caste. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, Violence, Hate crime, Racism, Murder, Slavery, and Classism

Moderate: Antisemitism

Minor: Death of parent

dianapiskor's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

5.0

Wow wow wow did I learn a great deal in this book. I think this is a must read for any individual, especially for those living in what is a caste system in America. Poignant, well researched, and well written, this book was difficult, but important, to read, as it lays out it's argument that in the United States, not all are born free and have never been so, even since the beginning of this nation's founding.

This novel argues that we have a caste system in the United States and that African Americans are at the bottom of this caste. Through exclusion, violence, and other strategic means, the United States has created a system where those at the bottom MUST stay at the bottom of a caste hierarchy or face the consequences. This is engrained in every facet of American life and has been done so in order to disenfranchise African Americans and to keep them in their caste. 

This book was enlightening, if not horrifying. The author lays out EVERYTHING the United States has done in order to subjugate African Americans and the extent to which individuals have done so is disgusting and terrifying. This is not an easy read. It is uncomfortable for those who are not aware of the deep history of this subjugation. But it is necessary to understand, to relate, and to see the effects of caste within our current events and the current day. 

This is an absolute must read, especially as the United States continues to see the issues of caste within the news, politics, and society. If you thought that these issues faced by Black individuals was a thing of the past, buckle up, because one cannot escape the past when it is woven into the present. However, please be aware of triggers, as part of this book can be upsetting. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Slavery, and Violence

Moderate: Medical content, Colonisation, Genocide, Death, Sexual assault, Antisemitism, and Hate crime

pmhandley's review against another edition

informative medium-paced

5.0

This was incredibly informative and provided a deep explanation of how the caste system exists in America without being overly academic or dense. Wilkerson's background as a journalist allows her to explain a complicated topic with a lot of historical information wedged in without ever sounding dry or losing your attention. This is definitely a worthwhile read. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Antisemitism, and Racial slurs

choicepotatoes_oldold's review against another edition

challenging informative slow-paced

4.75

TL;DR - 4.75 stars - highly, highly recommend

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Three things I'm still thinking about after reading this book:

» There are no Black people outside of America

» Germany looked to America for inspiration when creating their caste system during the Third Reich.

» Many of the health problems associated with Black folks in America (high blood pressure, etc) are not problems associated with folks in Africa. The stress of being Black in America has a physical cost, and middle- and upper-class Black women are particularly impacted.

As well as the audiobook was narrated, I'm fairly certain I'll have to read it again--as a physical book--to more fully digest the contents.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Antisemitism, and Racism

kemrick19's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Slavery, Racism, Hate crime, Police brutality, Antisemitism, and Classism

Moderate: Death of parent and Colonisation

shoshin's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

Sometimes, it's easiest to understand what is happening around you by finding a way to step outside it to describe it. Wilkerson does that brilliantly with this book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Hate crime, Torture, Violence, Antisemitism, Genocide, and Murder

Moderate: Sexism and Classism

torturedreadersdept's review against another edition

challenging informative medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Torture, Trafficking, Violence, Misogyny, Deportation, Antisemitism, Child death, Police brutality, Slavery, and Xenophobia

leweylibrary's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

5.0

"A world without caste would set everyone free."

People have been recommending this book to me for ages--I've even included it on many book displays--and now I know why. This truly should be required reading in America along with Stamped from the Beginning. The term racism really doesn't go far enough to explain this country's ills, but the argument that Wilkerson lays out for caste does. I learned so much and feel like this book really filled a lot of the gaps in my knowledge. Wilkerson does such an amazing job explaining such difficult phenomena in an accessible way, and now I feel like I need to buy a physical copy so I can reread it and mark things I want to remember and come back to later. This is one of those books that you continue to think about long after you finish it.

I also have to say I LOVE how the whole way through the abuse of Black people in America is compared to Jews in the Holocaust. I can imagine so many people HATE that comparison and think it goes way too far, and that's precisely why I love it. It goes exactly far enough.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Slavery, Genocide, and Antisemitism

lottpoet's review

challenging emotional informative slow-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

Moderate: Antisemitism

jess_westhafer's review against another edition

I felt like I got everything out of this book I was going to in the pages I read. The ideas started to seem redundant, and I didn’t feel the need to keep going. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racism, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Antisemitism, Violence, Slavery, and Torture