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A review by inkerly
How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
5.0
4.5 stars
This is an amazing and powerful read, and a fantastic addition to my Black History Month collection. After two months I finally put down this book having reread and taken detailed notes and adopted the new perspective of what it truly means to be an Antiracist. Kendi, an academic scholar and student/teacher of AntiRacist practices and strategy, put together a book packed with so much one could need to take in about AntiRacist. The book is a pilgrimage into the history and evolution of AntiRacist ideas and belief systems in the U.S, told through an eager but racially uneducated young Kendi from 1970s New York to present day. Each chapter is an introduction to a new term: one that describes a racist belief or practice, and its opposite twin an AntiRacist term that better eludes to what we, as Aspiring AntiRacists, should aspire to. AntiRacism means racial equity, to be against gender-racism, queer-racism, space-racism, bodily racism, behavioral-racism, and above all, racism in the form of racist policies created by racist policy makers in the act of self interest. Racism is not a war against ignorance and moral upbringing but a war against hate, capitalistic greed, and the selfish exploitation and discrimination of black bodies for white consumerism.
Nearly every argument for his case he makes on being AntiRacist “clicked” for me. I’d devoured Youtube social and culture commentary channels but none satisfied me and opened my perspective as much as this book. You truly have to want to be an AntiRacist and learn to deconstruct and identify racism by its terminology to really appreciate the way this book was written.
I will say that the criticism towards this book for attempting to compartmentalize AntiRacist theories in the rigid “ Word of the Chapter “ structure is an incredibly valid critique I’ve also had at some point. I know at times the new terminology in each chapter led to mental overload for me. But I also know I have a long way to go in terms of my education on this topic, even as a young Black woman, so I’m willing to accept that my interpretation of “excessive “ terminology might just be attributed to my lack of depth on the topic.
I also took issue with some of his arguments, like the concept of “anti-white racism” (which sounded a lot like reverse racism), the “inseparability of racism and capitalism “( need to read more activist work to settle into that theory), and the need to treat racism like a cancer (which I thought was a clever analogy but also a bit simplistic and only heartfelt as it stems from Kendi and his wife’s personal battles with cancer). He also made some statements that also disappointed me in their simplicity (like saying dark skinned people essentially perform reverse colorism on light skinned people as retaliation)
Normally these things would warrant knocking off a whole star from my review, but I reflected on and see it as more of Kendi’s academic and spiritual journey to that mindset is still as evolving as mine is, as the world’s is on racial constructs and so it’s ok that two AntiRacists have differing perceptions of a certain experience. I am growing and while I continue to grow, the lessons and wisdom of Kendi will forever live in spirit, to be acted upon in the near future
Highly recommend.
This is an amazing and powerful read, and a fantastic addition to my Black History Month collection. After two months I finally put down this book having reread and taken detailed notes and adopted the new perspective of what it truly means to be an Antiracist. Kendi, an academic scholar and student/teacher of AntiRacist practices and strategy, put together a book packed with so much one could need to take in about AntiRacist. The book is a pilgrimage into the history and evolution of AntiRacist ideas and belief systems in the U.S, told through an eager but racially uneducated young Kendi from 1970s New York to present day. Each chapter is an introduction to a new term: one that describes a racist belief or practice, and its opposite twin an AntiRacist term that better eludes to what we, as Aspiring AntiRacists, should aspire to. AntiRacism means racial equity, to be against gender-racism, queer-racism, space-racism, bodily racism, behavioral-racism, and above all, racism in the form of racist policies created by racist policy makers in the act of self interest. Racism is not a war against ignorance and moral upbringing but a war against hate, capitalistic greed, and the selfish exploitation and discrimination of black bodies for white consumerism.
Nearly every argument for his case he makes on being AntiRacist “clicked” for me. I’d devoured Youtube social and culture commentary channels but none satisfied me and opened my perspective as much as this book. You truly have to want to be an AntiRacist and learn to deconstruct and identify racism by its terminology to really appreciate the way this book was written.
I will say that the criticism towards this book for attempting to compartmentalize AntiRacist theories in the rigid “ Word of the Chapter “ structure is an incredibly valid critique I’ve also had at some point. I know at times the new terminology in each chapter led to mental overload for me. But I also know I have a long way to go in terms of my education on this topic, even as a young Black woman, so I’m willing to accept that my interpretation of “excessive “ terminology might just be attributed to my lack of depth on the topic.
I also took issue with some of his arguments, like the concept of “anti-white racism” (which sounded a lot like reverse racism), the “inseparability of racism and capitalism “( need to read more activist work to settle into that theory), and the need to treat racism like a cancer (which I thought was a clever analogy but also a bit simplistic and only heartfelt as it stems from Kendi and his wife’s personal battles with cancer). He also made some statements that also disappointed me in their simplicity (like saying dark skinned people essentially perform reverse colorism on light skinned people as retaliation)
Normally these things would warrant knocking off a whole star from my review, but I reflected on and see it as more of Kendi’s academic and spiritual journey to that mindset is still as evolving as mine is, as the world’s is on racial constructs and so it’s ok that two AntiRacists have differing perceptions of a certain experience. I am growing and while I continue to grow, the lessons and wisdom of Kendi will forever live in spirit, to be acted upon in the near future
Highly recommend.