Reviews with content warning for Misogyny - Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America

This was a lot. Was it a very important read and worth it yes. Did I sometimes feel dumb reading this yes. Most of the topics discussed are horrible so trigger warning. This book made me mad and sad. I do think people should read this, but it is basically a history book so I don’t know how assessable this would be for everyone. I do understand why it went through the whole history of slavery, but I don’t know as much about that so it was harder to I guess understand, but when we got more in the current day I was able to understand and like connect the dots more.

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meganpbennett's review

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challenging emotional informative reflective slow-paced

5.0

Stamped from the Beginning is one of those books that you need to read, but you don't necessarily want to read. It's a slow, hard read, and it encourages (White) readers to look at their own thoughts, their own biases, to see what racist ideas they might fall into, whether or not they realize that the ideas or thoughts are racist. It makes people think about being antiracist, as opposed to simply being not racist, and yes, there is a difference. The book also looks at intersectionality and how multiple types and levels of oppression can 'intersect' and cause problems, and how the intersection of oppression can lead to more oppression of various groups.

My only complaint about Stamped is how Kendi introduces the reader to people. He will describe the person, saying where they were from, maybe what job they held, and why they are important in the moment they are mentioned. Only then will he name the person. Most of those paragraphs would have been much more powerful had the person in question been identified in the first sentence, instead of in the second or third sentence.

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rupl's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative reflective slow-paced

5.0

Dense, detailed look at US history from a lens completely overlooked in the US school system. You'll brush with basic facts you learned long ago, but their rich stories might be completely new. This book calmly yet passionately tells another US history, using five major characters to guide us through various eras.

I learned new parts of history and re-learned many others, all the while learning not to characterize individuals, but each of their actions. The book compiles countless examples of segregation, assimilation, and finally antiracism, from fleeting moments to entire legacies of individuals. By methodically reading from start to finish, and looking at example after example of each ideology I formed a better, more accurate view of history as it relates to power, racist policy erected to protect the powerful, and the racist ideas that get created in order to defend racist policies.

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mezzano's review

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challenging informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

Ever since I read Ibram X. Kendi's book How to be an Antiracist, I've been meaning to read Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America. While I am no means an expert in racial politics or antiracism, I was stunned by how much I didn't know even after making the conscious effort to be more aware of how race affects my everyday life. I really appreciated how Kendi focused this story over 5 key historical figures, and used that as a tether to the political climate of each figure's respective period in American History. It was also really eye opening to see how race affected the very standards we learn in school, such as Shakespeare and the Salem Witch trials, even though race was never a part of any academic conversation at the very white schools I attended.

The humble nature of Kendi's work, where the author himself recognizes that everyone has an incomplete understanding of history and can improve on themselves to become more anti-racist, is very refreshing. It reminds readers that this is important, consistent, and constant work. Antiracism doesn't end with saying people are equal, just as it doesn't end with education (or reading a book). Even so, I was really pleased with how comprehensive this historical analysis really was. After reading, I felt like I walked away with a missing volume of history. As we continue to become more inclusive and accepting as a nation, I hope that this book replaces others in educational curricula. This is a book everyone should be exposed to at least once.

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anigoose's review

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challenging emotional informative slow-paced

5.0

I have both the audiobook and ebook, and I just wanted to share that I struggled a little with the audiobook. It was edited a little patchily and there would be audible (lol) differences between sound quality for sometimes just a word inserted into a sentence, or for a sentence in a paragraph. There are also occasional mouth sounds in the recording. If you are ND and have sensory issues this might be a problem for you. I could only listen with binaural beats in the background and whilst doing something like knitting.

It's not a knock on those who made it, or even a complaint, just a head's up for other folks with sensory processing issues!

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readandfindout's review

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informative reflective slow-paced

4.75

2017 first read: 4.5 stars.

A tabbed this book up so much. Everyone needs to read this, as it examines how every side of our history here in the United States helped racist ideas to develop into what they are today. This is a must read.

2022 reread:

Style/writing: 4.5 stars
Themes: 5 stars
Perspective: 5 stars

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