In Canada we often have the perception that we are better than the United States in regard to racism. This is clearly not true, and is an unhelpful comparison that allows us to ignore our racist history, and current racist policies and attitudes. In general, we don’t learn about this in school, and if we do it’s looked at as something that happened in the past. The books on the Antiracist reading lists that circulate are excellent, and valuable resources. Many of them focus on the US. While what happens in different countries is interconnected, I think it’s important to understand what is going on in your own country and community so that you can start to make changes. 

A Mind Spread Out On The Ground is an essay collection about how Indigenous people are treated in Canada and the US. Elliott combines memoir with facts, that really help the reader understand some of the key ways that Indigenous people are discriminated against. There are two essays that discuss the literary world and publishing industry that I found very interesting, especially with the conversations about own voices literature and reviews that has been happening on bookstagram recently. 

I would highly recommend this essay collection.