We cannot escape race. It is everywhere. And in what we refer to as the "Western world," race tends to slant one way. "White" is considered the norm; anything else is the "other" and, therefore, inferior and oppressed. And it can be hard to discuss this, because white people tend to feel an innate guilt.Robin Diangelo's argument in WHITE FRAGILITY is that racism and white supremacy are a part of white culture--we can't escape this. But we can address it. We can stop running from it. To do otherwise is to perpetuate these very things that most of us condemn. This is a slim volume, but it packs a wallop. I come from a rural small town, but have considered myself progressive for some time. I've recognized that I'm not truly above racism--none of us are, ultimately, Diangelo argues--but this book still made me think, and not just about myself, but about my friends and family, who will look you in the eye and tell you they aren't racist, and then tell an off-color joke with offensive terminology. I believe, ultimately, the people who truly need to read this book won't; but it will help those of us who do read it perhaps change a few minds, if only our own. An important, almost necessary read, especially as we enter these dark times that lay before us.
