Transcript
In light of several recent racist events — and in recognition of the countless we don't and likely will never know about — we're reminded that when we see injustice, it's up to us to step in and make a difference.
And it's not enough to “not be racist,” we have to be actively antiracist. It is our responsibility to listen, learn, take action, fail forward, and repeat.
Here are some resources to help you get started.
Understand that white supremacy occurs both overtly and covertly —
Image by @TheConsciousKid of a pyramid of text, with a line separating the very top of the pyramid – “Overt White Supremacy (Socially Unacceptable)” – from the rest of the pyramid – "Covert White Supremacy (Socially Acceptable.)
Overt White Supremacy (Socially Unacceptable)
Lynching, Hate Crimes, Blackface, The N-word, Swastikas, Neo-Nazis, Burning Crosses, Racist Jokes, Racial Slurs, KKK
Covert White Supremacy (Socially Acceptable)
Calling the Police on Black People, White Silence, Colorblindness, White Parents Self-Segregating Neighborhoods & Schools, Eurocentric Curriculum, White Savior Complex, Spiritual Bypassing, Education Funding From Property Taxes, Discriminatory Lending, Mass Incarceration, Respectability Politics, Tone Policing, Racist Mascots, Not Believing Experiences of BIPOC, Paternalism, “Make America Great Again,” Blaming the Victim, Hiring Discrimination, “You don't sound Black,” “Don't Blame Me, I Never Owned Slaves,” Bootstrap Theory, School-to-Prison Pipeline, Police Murdering BIPOC, Virtuous Victim Narrative, Higher Infant & Maternal Mortality Rate for BIPOC, “But What About Me?,” “All Lives Matter,” BIPOC as Halloween Costumes, Racial Profiling, Denial of White Privilege, Prioritizing White Voices as Experts, Treating Kids of Color as Adults, Inequitable Healthcare, Assuming Good Intentions Are Enough. Not Challenging Racist Jokes, Cultural Appropriation, Eurocentric Beauty Standards, Anti-Immigration Policies, Considering AAVE “Uneducated,” Denial of Racism, Tokenism, English-Only initiatives, Self-Appointed White Ally, Exceptionalism, Fearing People of Color, Police Brutality, Fetishizing BIPOC, Meritocracy Myth, “You're So Articulate,” Celebration of Columbus Day, Claiming Reverse-Racism, Paternalism, Weaponized Whiteness, Expecting BIPOC to Teach White People, Believing We Are “Post-Racial,” “But We're All One Big Human Family,” “There's Only One Human Race,” Housing Discrimination
Because of the history of white supremacy in the U.S. and its impact on our culture, whether intentionally or not, we've all taken actions with racist consequences. Instead of getting defensive, we have the opportunity to learn, change, and do better. Learn about some of the “socially acceptable” racist actions you may have unknowingly taken part in in the past – and make a plan to reverse course in the future.
Follow these organizations doing important work surrounding racial equity and justice —
- Antiracist Research & Policy Center
- Audre Lorde Project
- Black Women's Blueprint
- Color of Change
- Colorlines
- The Conscious Kid
- Equal Justice Initiative (EJI)
- Families Belong Together
- The Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights
- Muslim Girl
- MPowerChange
- NAACP
- National Domestic Workers Alliance
- RAICES
- Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ)
- SisterSong
- United We Dream
Based on list by Sarah Sophie Flicker & Alyssa Klein
Watch these films and shows that creatively dive into racism, past and present —
Netflix
- 13th (Ava DuVernay)
- American Son (Kenny Leon)
- Dear White People (Justin Simien)
- See You Yesterday (Stefon Bristol)
- When They See Us (Ava DuVernay)
Hulu
- If Beale Street Could Talk (Barry Jenkins)
- The Hate U Give (George Tillman Jr., *with Cinemax)
Available to Rent
- Black Power Mixtape: 1967-1975
- Clemency (Chinonye Chukwu)
- Fruitvale Station (Ryan Coogler)
- I Am Not Your Negro (James Baldwin documentary, *or Kanopy via your library)
- Just Mercy (Destin Daniel Cretton)
- Selma (Ava DuVernay)
- The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution
Based on list by Sarah Sophie Flicker & Alyssa Klein
Subscribe and listen to these podcasts that dive into important conversations around racial equity and justice —
- 1619 by the New York Times
- About Race
- Code Switch by NPR
- The Diversity Gap
- Intersectionality Matters! hosted by Kimberlé Crenshaw
- Momentum: A Race Forward Podcast
- Pod For The Cause from the Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights
- Pod Save the People by Crooked Media
Based on list by Sarah Sophie Flicker & Alyssa Klein
Read some of those books on race —
- Black Feminist Thought, Patricia Hill Collins
- Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower, Dr. Brittney Cooper
- Heavy: An American Memoir, Kiese Laymon
- How To Be An Antiracist, Ibram X. Kendi
- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou
- I'm Still Here: Black Dignity In A World Made for Whiteness, Austin Channing Brown
- Just Mercy, Bryan Stevenson
- Redefining Realness, Janet Mock
- Sister Outsider, Audre Lorde
- So You Want to Talk About Race, Ijeoma Oluo
- The Bluest Eye, Toni Morrison
- The Fire Next Time, James Baldwin
- The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, Michelle Alexander
- The Next American Revolution: Sustainable Activism for the Twenty-First Century, Grace Lee Boggs
- The Warmth of Other Suns, Isabel Wilkerson
- Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora Neale Hurston
- This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color, Cherríe Moraga
- White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism, Robin DiAngelo, PhD
Based on list by Sarah Sophie Flicker & Alyssa Klein
Read the entire document of antiracism resources —
Read the entire document of antiracism resources compiled by Sarah Sophie Flicker and Alyssa Klein, and make a plan on how you'll deepen your antiracism work.
The guide includes direct links to:
- Tools for white parents to raise antiracist children
- Articles to read
- Videos to watch
- Podcasts to subscribe to
- Books to read
- Films and tv series to watch
- Organizations to follow on social media
- And more
Access the document and resources at goodgoodgood.co/anti-racism-resources
Screenshot of a tweet by Ijeoma Olou (@IjeomaOlou):
The beauty of anti-racism is that you don't have to pretend to be free of racism to be an anti-racist. Anti-racism is the commitment to fight racism wherever you find it, including in yourself. And it's the only way forward.