Not all the books on this list are about racial justice… but a lot of them are. And as intersectionality tells us, our intersecting identities impact how we move through this world.
So even when a book isn’t about race, race will come into play because that’s how our society works. As @iamlisako wrote, a reading list will not dismantle racism.
Obviously I love reading and am obsessed with books. I turn to books for everything “learn how to garden” find a book! “Learn how to forage” find a book!
I confess that reading anti-racist works felt like such a good actionable first step toward dismantling white supremacy… and that’s just what it is.
The very first step, step zero even. All it costs is some time and a willingness to learn, but other than that there’s no investment. You aren’t putting any skin in the game.
Dismantling white supremacy and creating equity in our society is going to take a lot more than some reading.
However, you’ll feel more comfortable and confident if you get some reading in so you understand what we are fighting, or at least I did.
I didn’t want to bull in a china shop my way through anti-racist work and harm others in the process, so I learned as much as I could to hopefully avoid that outcome.
You’ll still make mistakes, but at least you’ll be more open to hearing that you did and rectifying it.