This summer I picked up a handful of books by black authors to add to my summer reading list. One of these was How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi. This is an absolute must-read by everyone! The book details the importance of being an antiracist vs. simply saying you are "not racist". To be an antiracist is to fight against racism in society instead of sitting by and letting it exist.
The author spends much time discussing his own racism in his life and his battle to be an antiracist. The author does not hold back on his own failings in life and that is an important point for all of us to carefully consider. We all hold racist ideas, whether we know it or not. We all need to carefully think about our choices and the policies we agree with. Are those policies racist? The author shares how important it is to constantly reflect on ourselves and identify our racism and do something about it.
This is not a book to be read once and tossed to the back of the book shelf. This is a book to be read, reflected upon, and then re-read a year later to analyze. How will I have change by the summer of 2021? Will I be closer to being an antiracist? Or will I still have tendencies of "not racist"?
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