ANTI-RACIST READING

BETWEEN THE WORLD AND ME by TA-NEHISI COATES

A profound work that addresses both the bigger ideals of America and the most intimate concerns of a father to his son. In the form of a letter to his son, Coates offers a framework for understanding our nation’s history. Americans have built an empire on the idea of “race,” a falsehood that damages us all but falls most heavily on the bodies of black women and men—bodies exploited through slavery and segregation, and, today, threatened, locked up, and murdered out of all proportion. What is it like to inhabit a black body and find a way to live within it? And how can we all honestly reckon with this fraught history and free ourselves from its burden? A groundbreaking and revelatory work at it’s initial publication in 2015 and sadly still timely in 2020.

In lieu of checking this book out from the physical library, here is your access to the ebook in SORA/OVERDRIVE. It is also available on SORA in audio.

SO YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT RACE by IJEOMA OLUO

In So You Want to Talk About Race, Ijeoma Oluo guides readers of all races through subjects ranging from intersectionality and affirmative action to "model minorities" in an attempt to make the seemingly impossible possible: honest conversations about race and racism, and how they infect almost every aspect of American life.

This title is not available digitally.

HOW TO BE AN ANTI-RACIST by IBRAM X. KENDI

Kendi weaves an electrifying combination of ethics, history, law, and science with his own personal story of awakening to antiracism. This is an essential work for anyone who wants to go beyond the awareness of racism to the next step: contributing to the formation of a just and equitable society.

In lieu of checking this book out from the physical library, here is your access to the ebook in SORA/OVERDRIVE.

THE END OF POLICING by ALEX S. VITALE

Recent years have seen an explosion of protest against police brutality and repression. Among activists, journalists and politicians, the conversation about how to respond and improve policing has focused on accountability, diversity, training, and community relations. Unfortunately, these reforms will not produce results, either alone or in combination. The core of the problem must be addressed: the nature of modern policing itself.

This book attempts to spark public discussion by revealing the tainted origins of modern policing as a tool of social control. It shows how the expansion of police authority is inconsistent with community empowerment, social justice— even public safety. Drawing on groundbreaking research from across the world, and covering virtually every area in the increasingly broad range of police work, Alex Vitale demonstrates how law enforcement has come to exacerbate the very problems it is supposed to solve.

This title has been made available by the author for free online.

ME AND WHITE SUPREMACY by LAYLA SAAD

Layla Saad leads readers through a journey of understanding their white privilege and participation in white supremacy, so that they can stop (often unconsciously) inflicting damage on black, indigenous and people of color, and in turn, help other white people do better, too. The book goes beyond the original workbook by adding more historical and cultural contexts, sharing moving stories and anecdotes, and includes expanded definitions, examples, and further resources.

This title is not available digitally. However, Layla Saad does offer the workbook for free online.

STAMPED FROM THE BEGINNING by IBRAM X. KENDI

In this deeply researched and fast-moving narrative, Kendi chronicles the entire story of anti-Black racist ideas and their staggering power over the course of American history. Stamped from the Beginning uses the life stories of five major American intellectuals to offer a window into the contentious debates between assimilationists and segregationists and between racists and antiracists. From Puritan minister Cotton Mather to Thomas Jefferson, from fiery abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison to brilliant scholar W.E.B. Du Bois to legendary anti-prison activist Angela Davis, Kendi shows how and why some of our leading proslavery and pro-civil rights thinkers have challenged or helped cement racist ideas in America.

TIn lieu of checking this book out from the physical library, here is your access to the ebook in SORA/OVERDRIVE.

WHITE FRAGILITY by ROBIN DIANGELO

According to antiracism scholar and educator DiAngelo, in conversations about race and combating racism, white participants often struggle with intense feelings of anger and defensiveness when presented with evidence that they benefit materially from systemic white privilege. Here the author offers a valuable guide to this phenomenon-which she terms white fragility-and makes concrete suggestions for how to address it, both in ourselves (if we are white) and in our communities.

In lieu of checking this book out from the physical library, here is your access to the ebook in SORA/OVERDRIVE. It is also available on SORA in audio.