Anti-Racism Reading
image courtesy of brette little
Wrapping your head around racism within the cultural and political landscape in Canada and the US can feel overwhelming, scary, and hopeless. For each one of us, the journey towards understanding begins with awareness.
One way to start is by turning towards literature that can help us understand how to become better allies, acknowledge our own privilege, and examine the political, cultural, and personal ways racism persists within our lives.
Words do carry power. Stories will teach us. Books can connect us.
Here are just a few works from black authors that may help broaden your insight, empathy and worldview:
Policing Black Lives: State Violence in Canada from Slavery to the Present by Robyn Maynard
The Skin We’re In: A Year of Black Resistance and Power by Desmond Cole
BlackLife: Post-BLM and the Struggle for Freedom by Rinaldo Walcott and Idil Abdillahi
Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
This Bridge Called My Back, Fourth Edition: Writings by Radical Women of Color edited by Cherríe Moraga and Gloria Anzaldúa
Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
To directly confront racism within, here are some additional titles to get you started:
Me and White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad
This Book is Anti-Racist by Tiffany Jewell
Beyond Colorblind by Sarah Shin
I’m Still Here by Austin Channing Brown
Stamped from the Beginning and How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
Wait. There’s more:
Here is a comprehensive anti-racist resource guide compiled by Tasha K. Ryals. It’s a shareable google doc with reading lists broken down into categories and links. If you want one go-to reading list to get you started, this is it.
Here’s another anti-racism resource list in a google doc, with focus on online reads as well as film and TV, compiled by Sarah Sophie Flicker and Alyssa Klein.
One blog post will never be comprehensive enough, but for those who are looking for a start, here it is. Learning is a lifelong process. Reading is the best tool in your kit for the work ahead. Let’s begin.
