Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You

Growing up in white suburbia, I didn't think of racism as institutional until I was in college. Privilege can blind those with it to its existence and impact. I was interested to read this adaptation of [b:Stamped from the Beginning 25898216 Stamped from the Beginning The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America Ibram X. Kendi https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1440457523l/25898216.SY75.jpg 45781103] for younger readers to see how Reynolds conveys ideas I didn't wrestle with until adulthood to school-age kids. As always, he knocked it out of the park. His writing is gorgeous. Accessible while recognizing the intelligence of his young audience. Honest with touches of levity. He prevents it from getting too dense with shorter chapters and occasional reminders about how different figures and ideas connect.Something I've been thinking a lot about lately is how we teach US history in the US. How some say removing Confederate monuments is “erasing history.” How some might consider this book too “biased” to be assigned in a classroom. As if Confederate monuments are unbiased, as if they don't promote a specific understanding of figures and events for a specific reason. History is not something to absolve ourselves of. It is something to reckon with. Honesty and accountability are prerequisites to growth. By being uncritical of our past, or even acting like it has no relation to the present, we do ourselves a grave disservice—some of us more than others. We should talk about how Thomas Jefferson was racist. We should talk about how racist dog whistles like “law and order” and “superpredators” have been weaponized by both Democratic and Republican administrations. The first step to solving a problem is admitting there is one, and reading (not to mention teaching) books like these from a young age will help us do just that.