Beyond the black box: Resources to educate yourself on antiracism

A few weeks ago a friend of mine, a White woman with a large online platform, started talking to me about how she felt she should start using her platform to talk about race - that she was awakening to her own White privilege and wanted to do more. Knowing what I do for a living, she asked for resources so I sent her a few books and places to start - with the caveat that it’s her job to educate herself, no one else's. For a similar list see the bottom of this page.

People around the globe have joined her in this awakening - which is positive and long long overdue. 

But, every time I see a post from one of my fellow White people resolving to start doing the work I also feel very fearful. My fear is that it’s just words, that this will pass. George Floyd’s name, like so many other names before, will disappear from the (White) press and social media and everyone will continue as before. There is research that shows that declaring an intention to act can give us the same burst of endorphins as the act itself - the reward comes irrelevant of taking action. The danger is that these declarations, while well intentioned, will make people feel like they have done enough.

These actions and declarations of intent aren’t even the start. We’ve woken up, but we haven’t opened our eyes yet.

Now we have to act. Daily. Big events are catalysts to change but they aren’t the change itself. That comes from many people taking many steps, choosing daily to use different language, to push themselves and others, to challenge those in power, to make difficult decisions and different choices. Above all to make sacrifices and take risks.

Alongside these declarations of intent from White people, I have also seen many pleas from Black people; pleas for White people to stop bombarding them with DMs on social media, to stop expecting them to be responsible for their education, to stop becoming aggressive or nasty when their demands for help are refused.

As well as not seeing the aggression, systemic racism and constant additional fight Black people face, we seem to not see their work. Countless Black people have published books, blogs, resources, films, podcasts and TV shows all depicting in great detail what racism is, how it manifests, how it is perpetuated and what we (White people) can and should do. We don’t need to ask for information - we’ve already been given it, in spades. We just haven’t seen it.

There is a huge amount of information out there and it can be hard to know where to start, so below is a focused list of some of the resources I’ve personally found useful. It’s a starting point, nothing more.

And remember - please, whatever you do, do not rely on others, particularly Black people, to educate or to create change.

That is on us.

Books:

Me and White supremacy. Layla F Saad. 

A 28 day workbook to unpack your own White supremacy - an excellent place to start!

Why I'm no longer talking to White people about race. Reni Eddo-Lodge. 

A deep dive into racism in the UK - past and present.

The Person You Mean to Be: How Good People Fight Bias. Dolly Chugh. 

Not specific to just racism although it features heavily - an engaging, research backed, practical guide to being an ally.

Twitter threads that break down how you can be an ally to Black people:

https://twitter.com/thearmchaircom/status/1259493155025629186

https://twitter.com/mireillecharper/status/1266335563197501440

Podcasts

Code Switch by NPR - Focused on the Black experience from a range of perspectives

The 1619 project - Very much US focused, unpicking how deeply entrenched slavery is in to the History of the US