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A review by ponch22
So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
5.0
Picked this up because as a cis white male who knows he's benefited from privilege and wants to do better, it's important to listen to Black (female) voices on how to fix our broken society.
[a:Ijeoma Oluo|14408819|Ijeoma Oluo|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1591962050p2/14408819.jpg] has written an excellent guidebook on how to talk about race, explaining (in very simple terms) what privilege is, what intersectionality is, how microagressions can pile up on BIPOC, what the school-to-prison pipeline is, and much much more. Several chapters have specific sections directed to white people trying to learn how to be better with other sections directed to POC to validate their feelings & give them permission to be angry (when applicable).
The book finishes with a few chapters on what to do, giving several bullet points offering places to fight systematic racism and instructions on how to be an ally. I often read this in bed but it feels like a book that deserves to be highlighted and annotated. There were a lot of great lessons that will never grow old (unless of course, we as a society can figure out how to completely destroy systematic racism) & I feel like I may be returning to this with pencil in hand to take notes and highlight important sections.
For now, I'll just leave this important quote from chapter 1, "Is It Really About Race?"
[a:Ijeoma Oluo|14408819|Ijeoma Oluo|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1591962050p2/14408819.jpg] has written an excellent guidebook on how to talk about race, explaining (in very simple terms) what privilege is, what intersectionality is, how microagressions can pile up on BIPOC, what the school-to-prison pipeline is, and much much more. Several chapters have specific sections directed to white people trying to learn how to be better with other sections directed to POC to validate their feelings & give them permission to be angry (when applicable).
The book finishes with a few chapters on what to do, giving several bullet points offering places to fight systematic racism and instructions on how to be an ally. I often read this in bed but it feels like a book that deserves to be highlighted and annotated. There were a lot of great lessons that will never grow old (unless of course, we as a society can figure out how to completely destroy systematic racism) & I feel like I may be returning to this with pencil in hand to take notes and highlight important sections.
For now, I'll just leave this important quote from chapter 1, "Is It Really About Race?"
1. It is about race if a person of color thinks it is about race.
2. It is about race if it disproportionately or differently affects people of color.
3. It is about race if it fits into a broader pattern of events that disproportionately or differently affect people of color.