Discussion 1

Review

The authors of this book, “Stamped: Racism, Anti-Racisms & You,” are Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi. Jason Reynolds has written several critically applauded books. Ibram X. Kendi is a renown historian and a bestselling author. The book was published on March 10th, 2020, by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers and has 321 pages. It is a historical fiction book. It highlights historical racist narratives and their application in the modern world by drawing its audience closer to the history of racist ideologies in America and slowly inspires hope for a world free of racism. I would give the book five stars because it gives an excellent picture of the roots of racism and how it triggers fresh insights into how the vice could be eliminated.

Foremost, Section I of the book encourages its audience to recognize the inherent biases that fill historical archives as a means to recognize and deconstruct racism. Section II illustrates how Black people have been stamped into the founding documents of America as second-class citizens, and Section III gives white Americans of the modern world ideas of how they could eliminate racism. I loved this section the most because of William Lloyd Garrison, a White man who applied his influences and white privileges to talk over slavery’s horrors of slavery and advocate for its elimination. It is courage that many whites dread yet very crucial in ending racism. The authors use Section IV to argue that people could radicalize their viewpoints and change from assimilationists to antiracists. Section V claims that one cannot be an antiracist without proving to be in an active fight in eradicating racism, sexism, heterosexism, and transphobia.

This book is perfect for people who are ignorant of the roots of racism and seem to ignore its impact on society. The authors do an excellent job of aligning every fact with appropriate arguments and examples to connect the ideas. The perfect selection of words makes the book not only interesting to read but crystal clear since it does not only succeed in making serious racist issues look simple but brings also out the actual picture and feelings associated with it. This selection of words is its vital strength. Such selection is also its weakness because it could offend readers who may disagree with the ideas presented therein. It is a 5-star book because it is straightforward, and everything about racism is stated loudly and clearly.

Discussion 2

The book that I will be reviewing is known as “Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? And Other Conversations About Race” written by Beverly Daniel Tatum. The text is an important answer to various questions about racism in the United States of America. The author has divided the book into five sections to help readers understand what racism is all about, how it impacts everyone in the country, and what every person can do within their powers to combat this menace.

This book is very resourceful when it comes to understanding how racism is entrenched in the country and helps readers understand when and how it begins. When children are young let’s say for instance in Kindergarten schools, they tend to play with one another and interact freely regardless of their race gender, or religion. However, as they grow up according to the author, they begin developing a sense of identity for themselves and this is when racism starts. In particular, when students begin to enter the adolescence stage, they begin to align themselves according to their identity whether be it from a racial perspective or religious perspective. This can be seen in most mixed high schools and colleges, where there is a high likelihood that one will find groups of black and white students sitting separately. The reason behind this is as Daniel tries to explain is about trying to have an identity for themselves.

In the text, the first section is dedicated to trying to address the question “who Am I?” for readers to understand the process of racial identity development. In the second section of the book, the author questions various reflections related to race as narrated by several individuals. In this way, the readers engage in conversations with various groups of people about various oppressive situations people go through just because of stereotyping. The author encourages the reader to engage in positive identity affirming experiences and recommends that everyone should empower people especially adolescents with positive room for identity development.

What makes the book more interesting and worthy of giving it a five-star review is because at the end of all, in sections four and five it offers individuals the solution to racism. This includes encouraging people to embrace a cross-cultural dialogue in a bid to denounce racism. It is only through effective cross-cultural dialogues that we can be able to raise consciousness about racism which can lead to effective action and social change. This text is written in simple and clear language that is easy for everyone to read and understand from students, parents, teachers, and community members.