Niceness Is Not Courageous: How Well-Meaning White Progressives Maintain Racism
- Downloads：4716
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-07-21 08:51:24
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Robin DiAngelo
- ISBN：0241519357
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
Building on the groundwork laid in the New York Times bestseller White Fragility， Robin DiAngelo explores how a culture of niceness inadvertently promotes racism。
In White Fragility， Robin DiAngelo explained how racism is a system into which all white people are socialized and challenged the belief that racism is a simple matter of good people versus bad。 DiAngelo also made a provocative claim: white progressives cause the most daily harm to people of color。 In Nice Racism， her follow-up work， she explains how they do so。 Drawing on her background as a sociologist and over 25 years working as an anti-racist educator， she picks up where White Fragility left off and moves the conversation forward。
Writing directly to white people as a white person， DiAngelo identifies many common white racial patterns and breaks down how well-intentioned white people unknowingly perpetuate racial harm。 These patterns include:
-rushing to prove that we are “not racist”;
-downplaying white advantage;
-romanticizing Black， Indigenous and other peoples of color （BIPOC）;
-pretending white segregation “just happens”;
-expecting BIPOC people to teach us about racism;
-carefulness;
-and shame。
DiAngelo explains how spiritual white progressives seeking community by co-opting Indigenous and other groups’ rituals create separation， not connection。 She challenges the ideology of individualism and explains why it is OK to generalize about white people， and she demonstrates how white people who experience other oppressions still benefit from systemic racism。 Writing candidly about her own missteps and struggles， she models a path forward， encouraging white readers to continually face their complicity and embrace courage， lifelong commitment， and accountability。
Nice Racism is an essential work for any white person who recognizes the existence of systemic racism and white supremacy and wants to take steps to align their values with their actual practice。 BIPOC readers may also find the “insiders” perspective useful for navigating whiteness。
Includes a study guide。
In White Fragility， Robin DiAngelo explained how racism is a system into which all white people are socialized and challenged the belief that racism is a simple matter of good people versus bad。 DiAngelo also made a provocative claim: white progressives cause the most daily harm to people of color。 In Nice Racism， her follow-up work， she explains how they do so。 Drawing on her background as a sociologist and over 25 years working as an anti-racist educator， she picks up where White Fragility left off and moves the conversation forward。
Writing directly to white people as a white person， DiAngelo identifies many common white racial patterns and breaks down how well-intentioned white people unknowingly perpetuate racial harm。 These patterns include:
-rushing to prove that we are “not racist”;
-downplaying white advantage;
-romanticizing Black， Indigenous and other peoples of color （BIPOC）;
-pretending white segregation “just happens”;
-expecting BIPOC people to teach us about racism;
-carefulness;
-and shame。
DiAngelo explains how spiritual white progressives seeking community by co-opting Indigenous and other groups’ rituals create separation， not connection。 She challenges the ideology of individualism and explains why it is OK to generalize about white people， and she demonstrates how white people who experience other oppressions still benefit from systemic racism。 Writing candidly about her own missteps and struggles， she models a path forward， encouraging white readers to continually face their complicity and embrace courage， lifelong commitment， and accountability。
Nice Racism is an essential work for any white person who recognizes the existence of systemic racism and white supremacy and wants to take steps to align their values with their actual practice。 BIPOC readers may also find the “insiders” perspective useful for navigating whiteness。
Includes a study guide。
Reviews
Maritza Soto
，
3。5⭐️ This is like the Cliff notes of all the books and essays she references on the topic of racism written by BIPOC academics and writers。 If you’ve read Ibram Kendi， Ijeoma Oluo， Kimberle Crenshaw， any of the members of the Combahee River Collective， you already get the gist of this book。 However， I recommend everyone who calls themselves a progressive or thinks of themselves as an “ally” read Chapter 5。 I saw things I’ve done and said listed in there， and while it made me cringe， it’s also a 3。5⭐️ This is like the Cliff notes of all the books and essays she references on the topic of racism written by BIPOC academics and writers。 If you’ve read Ibram Kendi， Ijeoma Oluo， Kimberle Crenshaw， any of the members of the Combahee River Collective， you already get the gist of this book。 However， I recommend everyone who calls themselves a progressive or thinks of themselves as an “ally” read Chapter 5。 I saw things I’ve done and said listed in there， and while it made me cringe， it’s also an important point of self-reflection。 Holding this mirror up to myself will help me confront these behaviors within myself and do something about them before I do more harm。 。。。more
judy-b。 judy-b。
，
The more I learn about racism， the more I learn how much I have to learn about racism。At the risk of giving credence to actual tone policing， I will posit that Robin DiAngelo narrates this in the style of a stern teacher speaking to a student who has been gliding through class and needs to buckle down and get serious or risk failing， and I will also allow that most white people have been gliding through life， making jokes in the back of class and definitely need to settle down and RTFM because w The more I learn about racism， the more I learn how much I have to learn about racism。At the risk of giving credence to actual tone policing， I will posit that Robin DiAngelo narrates this in the style of a stern teacher speaking to a student who has been gliding through class and needs to buckle down and get serious or risk failing， and I will also allow that most white people have been gliding through life， making jokes in the back of class and definitely need to settle down and RTFM because we already failed the midterm。 That said， doing the work is the work， not bemoaning the work or self-flagellating for not yet having done the work。 So whether you read this book or the many others on the subject， let's do the work。 。。。more
Stephanie
，
Really good。 Goes way deeper than White Fragility。 Learned a lot。 I got this out of the library but I think I'm going to need to buy my own copy。 Really good。 Goes way deeper than White Fragility。 Learned a lot。 I got this out of the library but I think I'm going to need to buy my own copy。 。。。more
Karen Ashmore
，
Are there excellent books on fighting racism written by BIPOC authors？ Absolutely！ Are there also some meaningful books for white anti-racists written from a white perspective？ Absolutely！In this book， Dangelo describes tactics often used by “well-intentioned” white progressives to avoid self-examination needed to get past their own unrecognized racism。 She also lists steps white people can actively do to practice what they preach。 Sure there are times where she is a bit egotistic about her skil Are there excellent books on fighting racism written by BIPOC authors？ Absolutely！ Are there also some meaningful books for white anti-racists written from a white perspective？ Absolutely！In this book， Dangelo describes tactics often used by “well-intentioned” white progressives to avoid self-examination needed to get past their own unrecognized racism。 She also lists steps white people can actively do to practice what they preach。 Sure there are times where she is a bit egotistic about her skills and knowledge。 And sure there was an incidence or two of ageism that I detected。 But overall she offers white progressives good advice on ways to learn and grow as an anti-racist activist。 BIPOC readers are not her target market。 White progressives are the target market for this book。 。。。more
Shafiqah Nor
，
My first reaction after completing this book is to not just read this in isolation。 Please read works by BIPOC academics and writers who ACTUALLY experience racial injustices and discrimination。 Support and prioritize amplifying works by racialized communities FIRST。 Then complement your reading with this work by Diangelo。 Conscious efforts are made to reference BIPOC academics from Noura Erakat， Ijeoma Oluo to Ibram X Kendi。 Although， I wish she pitched more of their works for readers to follow My first reaction after completing this book is to not just read this in isolation。 Please read works by BIPOC academics and writers who ACTUALLY experience racial injustices and discrimination。 Support and prioritize amplifying works by racialized communities FIRST。 Then complement your reading with this work by Diangelo。 Conscious efforts are made to reference BIPOC academics from Noura Erakat， Ijeoma Oluo to Ibram X Kendi。 Although， I wish she pitched more of their works for readers to follow up on。 Definitely liked this book more than Glennon Doyle's Untamed which was a bit tone deaf。Important points raised。 Particularly how 'nice racism' is pervasive and exists。 I appreciate her reflection， humility and transparency as a white woman in deconstructing how white progressives unintentionally undermine the anti-racism cause。 Including an honest acknowledgment of how works like hers and critical race theory can also produce 'savvy racism。'Destructive patterns include:-Unconvincing -Credentialing -Racial ignorance & lack of racial humility -Lack of racial curiosity -Inability/refusal to read racial cues-Inability to hold racial discomfort -Entitlement to take up space-Seeing as smartest in the room Some effort made to get readers to disrupt nice racism - but this is where I think the book fell short。 。。。more
Bruin Mccon
，
I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate。 I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen's Counciler or the Ku Klux Klanner， but the white moderate， who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says: "I agree with you in the goal you seek， but I cannot agr I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate。 I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen's Counciler or the Ku Klux Klanner， but the white moderate， who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says: "I agree with you in the goal you seek， but I cannot agree with your methods of direct action"; who paternalistically believes he can set the timetable for another man's freedom; who lives by a mythical concept of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait for a "more convenient season。" Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will。 Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection。-MLK， Letter from a Birmingham JailNice Racism begins with a discussion of why the well-meaning white progressive may be a bigger stumbling block to racial justice than is recognized in white social justice circles。 The author compares her sentiments to MLK’s well-known comments about white moderates。 She even shares her one of her own shitty racist stories。 The examples she gives can be like a gut punch for white people but the real pain isn’t in getting our feelings hurt over our racism being pointed out， rather it is what we cause people of color， especially Black people。 I felt when reading this book that WMWP might need like a list of shitty crap you shouldn’t do to your BIPOC friends anti-checklist。 It’s easy to find an example in this book and use it to reflect on shit you definitely shouldn’t do or say。 The part I took most to heart was not being silent in convos about race。 I’m an anxious person by diagnosis and have been thinking it is best to STFU and let people of color speak。 There have been a few recent professional group convos where I felt I probably said things that were not helpful and as a result got quiet。 It’s easy to retreat in the moment （and perhaps advisable） but also important to re-engage after thinking over what you should do better。 Just as we now know to check our white friends/family on crappy assumptions， rather than blocking them on FB and never speaking to them again， so too can we advance and learn new ways of conversing with BIPOC where we recognize that conversations about race require us to act in new ways we never really learned up until this very moment。 。。。more
Catherine Hultman
，
Three and 1/2 stars。
Randy Johnson
，
Narrow minded and needs a better balance including solutions。 I can only read so many complaints without ideas of how things can be progressed。 Couldn't finish it。 Narrow minded and needs a better balance including solutions。 I can only read so many complaints without ideas of how things can be progressed。 Couldn't finish it。 。。。more
Shalisa
，
I think this is a necessary read for white people。 As a Black woman， I understand， I agree， and I stand with what she is saying throughout this book。 Since books like these exist， I’m like Reni Eddo-Lodge， I’m no longer talking to white people about race。 Towards the end it started to echo her first novel White Fragility that’s why it lost a star。 Either way， I love her work and recommend recommend recommend’
Ramona Jennex
，
"One of the most transformative qualities we can strive to develop as a white person grappling with racism and our role in it is humility about the necessary limits of our understanding。"I feel that Robin DiAngelo has done a fine job of providing the reader the ability to become uncomfortable and examine unconscious biases and beliefs due to hegemony and the social construct to which we have been living as a person of European descent （white）。 I have put this book on my list of books to revisit "One of the most transformative qualities we can strive to develop as a white person grappling with racism and our role in it is humility about the necessary limits of our understanding。"I feel that Robin DiAngelo has done a fine job of providing the reader the ability to become uncomfortable and examine unconscious biases and beliefs due to hegemony and the social construct to which we have been living as a person of European descent （white）。 I have put this book on my list of books to revisit as she has presented a plethora of data， insights， lived experiences and examples。 。。。more
Marti
，
White Fragility was much better。
Bilal
，
Though this book was not written for me， but for white left-leaning progressives， there were some interesting points to be made in this book。 However， as a BIPOC， I don't believe this book's argument doesn't provide enough strength for white progressives to act this way。 If white progressives are to listen to BIPOC， then listen to my voice。 I do not feel oppressed by whites。 Is it possible for us to push the conversation of racial injustices while also accepting the fact that we no longer live u Though this book was not written for me， but for white left-leaning progressives， there were some interesting points to be made in this book。 However， as a BIPOC， I don't believe this book's argument doesn't provide enough strength for white progressives to act this way。 If white progressives are to listen to BIPOC， then listen to my voice。 I do not feel oppressed by whites。 Is it possible for us to push the conversation of racial injustices while also accepting the fact that we no longer live under the umbrella of white supremacy？ This book was full of anecdotal evidence， which unfortunately weakens the case that she was trying to make throughout the book。 She also had a missed opportunity to talk about biracial people living in America Specifically speaking， biracial people who are half white。 What about their perspectives as they are teeter-tottering between two different racial groups one of those that are supposedly oppressing the other group？ Overall， I see and can understand some of her perspectives。 Ultimately， this book does more harm than good。 。。。more
Scott Gibson
，
A wake-up call to those of use who care about how our best intentioned actions actually land with BIPOC peoples。 A call to arms to do the hard work to identify racist inclinations within ourselves before we can show allyship to others。
JW
，
My Favourite Hate-Read of 2021。 Potentially good points on white people learning racial humility， sensitivity， and compassion obscured by the narcissistic rantings of a high-priced public intellectual complaining about how some people refused to fall for her Kafka trap。The best parts？ Quotes from better writers and thinkers on CRT and social justice--Kendi， Baldwin， DuBois。 Go read them。 If you've endured the earlier book "White Fragility"， you don't need this retread。 Skip this unless guilt is My Favourite Hate-Read of 2021。 Potentially good points on white people learning racial humility， sensitivity， and compassion obscured by the narcissistic rantings of a high-priced public intellectual complaining about how some people refused to fall for her Kafka trap。The best parts？ Quotes from better writers and thinkers on CRT and social justice--Kendi， Baldwin， DuBois。 Go read them。 If you've endured the earlier book "White Fragility"， you don't need this retread。 Skip this unless guilt is your kink。 。。。more
Alexandra Ferretti
，
White Fragility is a better book。 There are some good points in here， but there are some strange moments—like the New Age chapter or the story about how she was surprised that a London cabdriver didn’t ask her about her anti-racist work after he learned she wrote a book。
weirdfish
，
Drivel of the highest order
Jennifer
，
All white liberals and progressives who consider themselves “not racist” and/or “woke” should read this ASAP。 Chances are， you are doing it wrong。 If you haven’t read White Fragility， and don’t know what white fragility is， you might want to start with that book first。
Anne-Marie
，
#NiceRacism is the first publication by #RobinDiAngelo I have read/listened to。 Whilst it was interesting it has raised many questions for me – am I too idealistic in looking for human qualities in the people I met rather than the labels？ Is this white priviledge？ I know we need to be teaching ourselves about the issues of race， and historical context but I am truly uncertain as to the gains in my understanding of the issues from a person who is white and is hung up on telling the reader how wro #NiceRacism is the first publication by #RobinDiAngelo I have read/listened to。 Whilst it was interesting it has raised many questions for me – am I too idealistic in looking for human qualities in the people I met rather than the labels？ Is this white priviledge？ I know we need to be teaching ourselves about the issues of race， and historical context but I am truly uncertain as to the gains in my understanding of the issues from a person who is white and is hung up on telling the reader how wrong and damaging their thinking is…。 This has definitely been thought provoking for me and has offered an alternative perspective。 I’m not sure I can rate this one。Thanks to #Netgalley and #PenguinRandomHouseDigitalAudio for gifting me this audiobook in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Grant
，
DiAngelo takes a long time to highlight anecdotal situations of casual racism， ignorance and general white people stupidity with sprinkles of quotes from anti racist books that are actually worth reading。 Nice Racism is just a furthering on DiAngelo’s constant need to seek approval from people of colour instead of actually doing anti racist work or trying to gain better outcomes and justice for the oppressed。This current trend of books on racism that are so devoid of actual history， analysis and DiAngelo takes a long time to highlight anecdotal situations of casual racism， ignorance and general white people stupidity with sprinkles of quotes from anti racist books that are actually worth reading。 Nice Racism is just a furthering on DiAngelo’s constant need to seek approval from people of colour instead of actually doing anti racist work or trying to gain better outcomes and justice for the oppressed。This current trend of books on racism that are so devoid of actual history， analysis and or helpful education are not much more than slacktavism from all involved。 。。。more
K
，
I'd only read this if I were in a Chinese prison as a form of punishment that includes being tortured on a daily basis for my religious beliefs。 Judging from the glowing reviews and lack of self-awareness， I can see that the latest volume of "Just say no to white meat，" will do very well。 I'd only read this if I were in a Chinese prison as a form of punishment that includes being tortured on a daily basis for my religious beliefs。 Judging from the glowing reviews and lack of self-awareness， I can see that the latest volume of "Just say no to white meat，" will do very well。 。。。more
vaderbird
，
5 star - Perfect4 star - i would recommend3 star - good2 star - struggled to complete1 star - could not finish
Jasmine
，
Disclaimer: I don't rate non-fiction or （usually） review them。 As this was an arc in exchange for an honest review， I will do my best to give a small summary of my thoughts。I found this to be an interesting read which has given me a lot to think and reflect upon。 I will be rereading this at some point and probably with a pen and notebook in hand。 I felt like this was well-written and quite easy to follow especially as DiAngelo shares a number of personal anecdotes。 Disclaimer: I don't rate non-fiction or （usually） review them。 As this was an arc in exchange for an honest review， I will do my best to give a small summary of my thoughts。I found this to be an interesting read which has given me a lot to think and reflect upon。 I will be rereading this at some point and probably with a pen and notebook in hand。 I felt like this was well-written and quite easy to follow especially as DiAngelo shares a number of personal anecdotes。 。。。more
Chris Boutté
，
I bought this book on launch day and binged it within 24 hours。 Since reading her first book White Fragility and enjoying it， I wanted to better understand why she’s so polarizing。 Again， Robin brings up some great observations， but I think I understand why she upsets so many people。 There’s far too much to write in this brief review， but although Robin makes many valid points， the primary issue I see is that she puts white people in a lose-lose scenario where it’s impossible to not be racist。 R I bought this book on launch day and binged it within 24 hours。 Since reading her first book White Fragility and enjoying it， I wanted to better understand why she’s so polarizing。 Again， Robin brings up some great observations， but I think I understand why she upsets so many people。 There’s far too much to write in this brief review， but although Robin makes many valid points， the primary issue I see is that she puts white people in a lose-lose scenario where it’s impossible to not be racist。 Regardless of if she believes that， I think that’s the wrong way to go about educating people because they feel hopeless and don’t even want to try。 If I’m being honest， there’s not much different between this book and the last book aside from personal experiences she’s had since the previous book。 She tries to focus more on the aspect of progressive white people being more problematic than they realize， but personally， I gathered that from the first book。 Is it worth your time？ If you read her last book， maybe you’ll get something new from this one。 But if you’re someone who is highly critical of Robin’s work， I personally don’t think you’re allowed to criticize it unless you read it cover to cover。I like writing short book reviews with my overall thoughts， but if you’re interested in honest， nuanced review of the book， here’s the link: https://www。therewiredsoul。com/blog/robin-diangelo-nice-racism-review 。。。more
David
，
How lacking in self-awareness do you have to be to choose such a subtitle？ Robin DiAngelo herself has likely perpetuated more racial harm than any other single white progressive。 I haven't read it and won't read it because it appears to simply be more of the same from her first book， which I have read。 How lacking in self-awareness do you have to be to choose such a subtitle？ Robin DiAngelo herself has likely perpetuated more racial harm than any other single white progressive。 I haven't read it and won't read it because it appears to simply be more of the same from her first book， which I have read。 。。。more
Jose
，
While 'White Fragility' was a mediocre to awful book， I felt there may have been a couple of points that were somewhat redeeming among a lot of the race essentialism and classist superiority that pervaded the book。 Unfortunately， this book is even worse。Part of the problem in this book is DiAngelo's fragile ego getting in the way of the stated case of the book， which is ostensibly how progressive whites are the most harmful contingent to black americans。 For example， there's a quite telling pass While 'White Fragility' was a mediocre to awful book， I felt there may have been a couple of points that were somewhat redeeming among a lot of the race essentialism and classist superiority that pervaded the book。 Unfortunately， this book is even worse。Part of the problem in this book is DiAngelo's fragile ego getting in the way of the stated case of the book， which is ostensibly how progressive whites are the most harmful contingent to black americans。 For example， there's a quite telling passage where DiAngelo describes herself getting into a cab and having a discussion with a cabbie， and being appalled and furious that he's not bending the knee to her credentials and education and won't just listen to her pontificate about race while he's at his job。 Diangelo also knows she has been criticized about her retrograde views on class。 Well let DiAngelo take you on a superfluous journey through her Charles Dickensesque childhood so she can armor herself against such criticism。 It's tiresome to read this naked self justification。She also cant help her hypocrisy。 She tells whites they can't question black criticism; however， she's more than ready to criticize John McWhorter's harsh comments when she infantilizes black americans， and then she post-hoc writes that she only ever meant white people can't question black criticism when they're in her antiracist sessions。 She criticizes white people for trying to look better than other white people on racial wokeness。 However， she then turns about and criticizes white women for crying about black children being shot。。。 and assumes the worst in their intent。 She contrasts that with her noble way of crying which she thinks makes her more racially sensitive than others。 Does she have issues with class？ Of course。 She has been criticized as a wall street sycophant; someone who takes c-suite executives' money， to have their at-will employees forced into her trainings under the watchful， punitive eyes of those execs。 This is a situation where employees have to tiptoe how they act under penalty of losing their jobs。 Of course， those execs can then use DiAngelo as a shield from actual structural change by pointing to these classes as evidence they have done significant work on racism and inequality。 She gets rich off this tacit agreement。 Here she's back with more nonsense in this vein。 Many times she has criticized white people for being racist when they talk too much and out of turn。 Now she describes a class where no white people are talking， and she calls all of them racist for not saying a word。 She tries to get at the reason nobody is talking; one person says they are afraid of losing their job， and DiAngelo scoffs at this。 DiAngelo then comparatively says she understands why black people wouldn't want to speak up in these situations because among other things it might be emotionally taxing。 Somehow， fear for your family's livelihood isn't justifiable for Diangelo as a reason to keep quiet， but for a different person of a different skin color feeling bad is a perfectly reasonable reason。 No wonder she's been criticized for infantilization and classism。Where does all this stem from？ Well it's quite clear from DiAngelo's descriptions in this book that her family was/is virulently racist。 She possibly has quite a bit of self loathing。 She certainly realizes how racist she is， she repeatedly describes herself as acting racist at numerous times。 Probably the most cringe part of the book is when DiAngelo early in her life， admits at the time having no black friends， and finds herself at a dinner with a black couple。 How does she respond？ Basically， by telling this poor couple every racist joke and comment she's ever heard。 She realizes something is wrong with the interaction; but only realizes much later this didn't make for a pleasant dinner party。 It's mind boggling， but it gives insight into just how awkward and unpleasant she must have been。 Is this whole project self absolution？ Does she accuse every white person of the same or worse level of racism she harbors， because she can then feel a little better about herself and her progress？So many of these questions are unanswered and probably unknowable。 These questions could be criticized as a bit superfluous to the content of the book。 What's specifically irritating in this book is DiAngelo's conceit that white people's navel gazing is what this country really needs。 Tellingly， she cites a statistic about how little wealth the average black family possesses compared to the average white family。 Whats the problem here for DiAngelo？ Well she doesn't really talk about the causes of this inequality， where it comes from， how it impacts people， or give ideas how to fix it。 No rather she is appalled that some white people don't know the actual statistic she cites。 You get the sense that DiAngelo is fine with structural inequality and class superiority as long as people feel appropriately badly about it。 She talks a lot about the term structural racism， but she very rarely describes it in any way。 She doesn't have any ideas to fix it， other than white progressives sadly gazing at their navel。What you will get from this book is plenty of race essentialism， plenty of twisted logic， plenty of hypocrisy， and an unending lack of self awareness。 It's a remarkably awful work。 。。。more
Donald A
，
𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐠𝐚𝐲…𝐈 𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐤 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭。𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐇𝐢𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐜…𝐈 𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐤 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭。𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐀𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐬𝐭…𝐈 （𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲） 𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐤 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭。Why do I rarely talk about these things？ Well let's take a step back。 Say you were meeting me for the very first time， and the only information you were given about who I am were these labels: Male。 Gay。 Hispanic。 Atheist。What kind of person comes to your mind that fits into each of these categories？What comes to your mind when you thi 𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐠𝐚𝐲…𝐈 𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐤 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭。𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐇𝐢𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐜…𝐈 𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐤 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭。𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐀𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐬𝐭…𝐈 （𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲） 𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐤 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭。Why do I rarely talk about these things？ Well let's take a step back。 Say you were meeting me for the very first time， and the only information you were given about who I am were these labels: Male。 Gay。 Hispanic。 Atheist。What kind of person comes to your mind that fits into each of these categories？What comes to your mind when you think of a “Gay Male”？ Flamboyant？ Feminine？ Limp wrists？What comes to your mind when you think of an “Atheist？” Snobbish？ Science-obsessed？ Blasphemous？Now…take these labels and apply them back to me， to how I 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 am as an individual。 Do these labels easily fit into people's general perception of me？ It's a simple answer: “no"。 And THAT is the reason why！𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐈 𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐞 𝐦𝐲𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐈 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐦𝐞 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠， 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭， 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐬。I’d rather we all be judged， as Martin Luther King Jr。 said， based upon the content of our character。I don’t intend for you to judge me by virtue of my sexual preference。I don’t intend for you to judge me by virtue of my race。I don’t intend for you to judge me by virtue of my religious affiliation。I want you to get to know ME first， minus the preconceptions。 𝐁𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐈 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐳𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐈 𝐚𝐦， 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐈 𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐬。 The problem is these labels are only mere facets of who I am as a human being， just as I believe this to be the case for all of us。𝐁𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐢𝐧𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲， 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐮𝐬 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠。𝐁𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐢𝐧𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲， 𝐚 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧’𝐬 𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐝𝐨 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐱， 𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐪𝐮𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧 𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐮𝐬。𝐁𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐢𝐧𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲， 𝐚 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧’𝐬 𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐞 𝐚 𝐝𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐨𝐧𝐞'𝐬 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫。As Ayishat Akanbi put it: "𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐱𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐲。" The obsession with one’s labels become a self-fulfilling prophecy which leaves no room for change， let alone personal growth。Perhaps as you read this， this sounds like common sense。 But things seemed to have changed。 More and more I continue reading about a growing ideology in our society that:Encourage people to see each other ONLY for their labels， not for their individuality。Encourage people to see each other ONLY for their group identities， not for their common humanity。Encourage people to indulge in cognitive biases like mindreading， overgeneralizing， and black-and-white thinking。This smorgasbord of an ideology has come to be more popularly known as: “wokeness”。Simply put， the very ideals I’ve stood for the past few years are in direct opposition to this new ideology。So perhaps you can understand why a part of me is fascinated at how this ideology has reached such a wide audience， especially among the political Left， with little Critical （pun intended） examination。 Perhaps you can understand my fascination reading about this ideology that argues the very ideals I stand for， the message I’ve promoted for years， can now be entirely summarized under labels like “white supremacy”， "white privilege"， "patriarchy"， “racist”， “microaggression”， and “hateful”。But I get it。I understand in these current times A LOT of us are stressed out and worried。 I understand it’s hard for anyone to think clearly， let alone rationally， when our minds are shrouded in weeds。 𝐈 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐢𝐧 𝐧𝐮𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝， 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐱 𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐜𝐫𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐬𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐝𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬。So I understand that lots of people at this time will be desperate to find something which helps them get back to Certainty， back to some sense of clarity and normalcy， back to some sense of renewed purpose and meaning…even if that means embracing an over-simplistic， fringe ideology like this book offers。Don’t get me wrong， there are 100% real problems in our society that still need to be solved。 I'm not here to pretend like everything is all fine and dandy。 It's not。 𝐁𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐞’𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐠𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐰𝐞’𝐫𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐠𝐧𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐬， 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬。 𝐖𝐞’𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐠𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐱 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫-𝐬𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦。THIS is not the way forward！BUT I have a solution！ And it goes right back to what I was talking about earlier。We move forward by focusing on our common humanity。We move forward by focusing on what we have in common。We move forward by focusing on understanding and less on labeling。𝐖𝐞 𝐃𝐈𝐅𝐅𝐔𝐒𝐄 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐛𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲。𝐖𝐞 𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐒𝐂𝐄𝐍𝐃 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐛𝐢𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐣𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐛𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲。𝐖𝐞 𝐀𝐂𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖𝐋𝐄𝐃𝐆𝐄 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐰𝐞 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞…𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐂𝐇𝐎𝐎𝐒𝐄 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲。For every time we do this， we’ll remind our survival brain who’s in charge of how we connect with others。 We’ll remind our survival brain how naïve the caricatures we create in our minds about mass groups of people are。𝐈𝐟 𝐰𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐲， 𝐥𝐞𝐭’𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐧𝐞𝐠𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧 𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐮𝐬。 𝐑𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐰𝐞'𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐨𝐮𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞。Because what’s the alternative？A society which is OBSESSED with focusing on what makes us separate from each other。A society which DISCRIMINATES people based primarily upon their labels。A society which attempts to solve the problem of prejudice…with EVEN MORE PREJUDICE。But thankfully we don't have to become "woke"！ I challenge you to come with me and take the road less traveled。 Let's use an even more “radical” approach to connecting with others: 𝐓𝐨 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭。 𝐓𝐨 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭， 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤。 𝐓𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐜𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲， 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧'𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞。 𝐓𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐭 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐭 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞， 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐟𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐞。Or how about this。。。？𝐘𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐚 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠。 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐈’𝐦 𝐚 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠。 𝐋𝐞𝐭’𝐬 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞。 :） 。。。more
mark monday
，
Dear White People，Please stop putting money into this person's purse！ Please stop handing your greenbacks over to a person who is clearly projecting their own actual racism onto all other white people。 Please stop adding to the wealth of a person who diminishes and infantilizes black people。 Please stop fattening the bank account of a person who sees black people as a monolithic race composed solely of victims and who sees white people as automatically born racist。 Please stop recommending and - Dear White People，Please stop putting money into this person's purse！ Please stop handing your greenbacks over to a person who is clearly projecting their own actual racism onto all other white people。 Please stop adding to the wealth of a person who diminishes and infantilizes black people。 Please stop fattening the bank account of a person who sees black people as a monolithic race composed solely of victims and who sees white people as automatically born racist。 Please stop recommending and -for God's sake - teaching an author who thinks individualism is a problem and that progress has not happened。 Please stop listening to a person who essentializes and judges black & white people based on the color of their skin。 Please avoid a so-called educator whose lessons are diametrically opposed to the teachings of MLK Jr。 Because of prejudice， black & brown & indigenous & asian & jewish & middle eastern people have been reduced into stereotypes by euro-white people since forever。 And vice versa。 Most， maybe all ethnicities do the same within their communities， this dehumanization based on things like language， faith， amount of melanin。 And how has this worked out for us？ Have the results of tribalist， judgmental， tunnel-visioned thinking based on color， country， or culture been so uplifting and inspiring that we should continue generalizing about the human race？ About any race？Robin DiAngelo， a white corporate consultant， is rich enough already。 If you want to buy books on race & antiracism， why not choose an author who is black or brown and who maybe doesn't make thousands of dollars an hour to talk to corporations？ If you want to treat people who don't look like you with the same respect that you treat people who do look like you， because for some reason you aren't doing that already （？！） 。。。 maybe avoid giving money to a person who exists only to separate and who assumes she knows what & how everyone thinks， and why they think that way？ If you want to perform allyship， maybe go on stage instead？ If you want to self-flagellate， maybe get into the bdsm scene instead？ Aren't there enough white saviours running around already？ Seriously， don't you realize that it is hypocritical to provide even more funds to a bougie white grifter who literally， gladly， admits that they are a racist and will always be one？ And why does a person who turns all white people into uppity secret-racist monsters and who reduces all black people into saintly magical-negro caricatures even have such a wide platform？ Shaking my head at America here and at self-loathing liberals everywhere。 Y'all kinda make me ashamed to be a progressive。 This laughable charlatan is not helping this country。 She is a divider， not a uniter。People， please stop supporting the normalization of racism。Please stop spreading her toxic message。Please stop giving her money！ More voices against this deterministic claptrap:https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=6TPuZ。。。https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=9Tmha。。。https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=jU0fw。。。https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=O3JJ6。。。https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=VxDUN。。。https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=-tjgX。。。https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=5C1_K。。。https://medium。com/illumination-curat。。。https://mzfayya。medium。com/glorifying。。。https://www。dal。ca/news/2020/09/01/ro。。。https://unherd。com/2021/06/antiracism。。。https://twitter。com/RheaBoydMD/status。。。https://twitter。com/cvaldary/status/1。。。https://twitter。com/thomaschattwill/s。。。$$$UPDATEI want to make it clear that I'm not advocating against people reading this book。 I may laugh at you if you do， but hey it's a free country and I'm not a book burner。 Nowhere in the original review did I advocate banning this trash。 People can read whatever garbage they want to read。 What I'm against is （1） DiAngelo's toxic ideology and （2） how white people are making yet another rich white person even more rich by buying a book all about that white person's questionable perspective on race。 When they could instead choose to actually support people who aren't white with their dollars。 Also， libraries exist！ I'm sure DiAngelo would approve of people supporting libraries？ Or maybe she would think that is yet another example of white supremacist culture。 He said with a sneer。 。。。more
Sarah Waldron
，
Having read the predecessor to this book not long ago， I was very much looking forward to seeing what this book had to offer。 Thank you to Robin DiAngelo and @AllenLaneBooks for this advanced audio copy of Nice Racism。 Nice Racism is due to be published on 29th June 2021 and you can get a copy here。Description 🔖Robin DiAngelo’s first book; White Fragility explored the concept of all white people being socialised into a system that is inherently racist。 In this follow up work， DiAngelo discusses Having read the predecessor to this book not long ago， I was very much looking forward to seeing what this book had to offer。 Thank you to Robin DiAngelo and @AllenLaneBooks for this advanced audio copy of Nice Racism。 Nice Racism is due to be published on 29th June 2021 and you can get a copy here。Description 🔖Robin DiAngelo’s first book; White Fragility explored the concept of all white people being socialised into a system that is inherently racist。 In this follow up work， DiAngelo discusses how white progressives unintentionally cause the most racial harm。 She uses her background and vast experience as a sociologist to open the conversation about how niceness does not equate to anti-racismGeneral Thoughts 🤔I think that this follow up book to White Fragility was just as good and just as informative。 Again， I agreed with many of the points raised emphatically because they were scenarios that I have encountered and lived; I know them to be true。 What this book made me realise is that I’m disappointed in myself for not being braver and speaking out when well-meaning white people have made me feel less than or uncomfortable。 At the very least， why am I not able to do this with people that I consider to be close to me？ Which probably loops back to white fragility; I don’t want to upset people and make them feel uncomfortable。The downplaying of white privilege and attitudes about individualism really struck a chord with me。 I am almost certain that many of the white people that I know would claim that they have not received any preferential treatment because of their whiteness and any successes that they have are due to their own individual hard work。 I don’t doubt that they have worked hard， but this statement is flawed due to the fact that they did not start from the same place as people of colour will have started from; they had a head start just because of their whiteness。 This is not a statement that sits well with white progressives as is well documented within this book。Writing Style ✍️Similar to the first book， I thought that this one was structured and organised in a way that made all of the information digestible and easy to understand。 I felt like Nice Racism included more real life examples from the authors experiences that helped to make her explanations relatable。 I appreciated that the examples used weren’t only statements or actions of other people。 The author included evidence of times when she herself has perpetuated racial harm。 I found her explanations of how she addressed and dealt with those incidents informative。I read some quite unsavoury and negative reviews about White Fragility after I had read it and it pleased me to see that some of that was directly addressed in this book。Conclusion & Scoring 🎖️As I’ve said in other blog posts， I find reviewing books like this really difficult as they do invoke and draw out a lot of emotional feelings for me， but I don’t find it easy to pack all of that into a review。 I also don’t think that a review is the place for that。 I am thankful for Robin DiAngelo’s work as I think that is educating for me and others and helps to at the very least， see things from a perspective that is not your own。 。。。more
Bob Hughes
，
After the runaway success of 'White Fragility'， it seemed almost inevitable that DiAngelo would release another book， and indeed， she shares her long history of experience of being a white person engaging with other white people about race， racism and anti-racist work。 She details many circumstances in which a white person can analyse their behaviour and make proper change， i。e。 making sure that in being 'nice' （hence the title of the book）， we are not accidentally using that as an excuse for do After the runaway success of 'White Fragility'， it seemed almost inevitable that DiAngelo would release another book， and indeed， she shares her long history of experience of being a white person engaging with other white people about race， racism and anti-racist work。 She details many circumstances in which a white person can analyse their behaviour and make proper change， i。e。 making sure that in being 'nice' （hence the title of the book）， we are not accidentally using that as an excuse for doing nothing， or enacting racial harm in another way- for example， not speaking up， or talking about how we are 'one of the good ones' and thereby excusing ourselves from any racism we may have enacted。In many ways， this book looks at some harmful actions and behaviours that many people wield， consciously or not， and in those scenarios， this book is very helpful。However， there are two linked problems that I had with the book that I couldn't quite shake whilst listening to it。 And those are audience and purpose。Although DiAngelo is （rightly） quick to both announce that she herself is not an expert in experiencing racism， but rather a very experienced facilitator （a strength that she shares effectively in many parts of the book）， and quick to quote and cite Black writers and thinkers who have led her to the conclusions in the books， I found myself wondering why the book needed to exist when there are so many brilliant books by Black writers， who share experiences they themselves have experienced。As a result， I got lost in the who the intended audience for this book would be， and therefore what its purpose would be。For example， if the book is aimed at those who read 'White Fragility' and wanted to delve into next steps， this book feels like it might go in too high after that， or assumes knowledge of many other writers， whereas a book like Reni Eddo-Lodge's 'Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race' or Ijeoma Oluo's 'So You Want To Talk About Race' might be a better point of entry。 If the book is aimed at those who are more experienced and are ready to be challenged， then I also question if 'Nice Racism' is the right book， or rather， the right book over the work of a Black writer or thinker。This is not to say that people will only pick up one book on anti-racism- many people don't- but I think it has to be recognised that many people do， as evidenced by 'White Fragility' massively outselling many other books on race and racism last year。 I recognise I am saying this all as a white person， and， to follow some of the learnings from 'Nice Racism'， not to position myself as having 'solved it' or showing that I am 'one of the good ones'， but rather to question whether this book， and DiAngelo's platform， could have been better used as a co-authored book， uplifting and featuring voices directly affected by racism， and/or supporting in another way。 Again， this is not to say that the book is without merit- there was a lot in this book that made me deeply reflect， often with horror， on my own behaviours and actions， and DiAngelo is clearly very skilled and experienced as a facilitator， and therefore in seeing reactions before they arise。 There is also a lot of value in white people owning the problem and talking to each other about it， as DiAngelo does with a presumed white audience for the book。 But I do wonder if this book relies too much on readers finishing this book， and immediately picking up books by Black authors， when the middleman could have just been cut out， and her platform could have just lifted up those authors themselves。 3。5 stars rounded up。I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Carrie
，