Racism

Gloria Steinem and Dorothy Pitman Hughes, 1971

This iconic image of the two founders of Ms. Magazine was taken by Dan Wynn in 1971 for Esquire Magazine and shows Steinem and Hughes sharing a large skirt, each with a raised fist salute to demonstrate feminist solidarity.

The photo was taken before intersectional feminism was named. Still, this picture always seemed hopeful to me. Aspirational.

 What This Is. Why. And Who I Am.

So, this newsletter is about whiteness. Privilege. Action. And Words.

Animated by a spirit of responsibility and the belief that words are their very own type of protest, I hope this letter supports a deeper and more critical “white” understanding of why/how/that Black Lives haven’t mattered in this country. And, hopefully, help shape a white response to racism that can be more thoughtful, truthful, and heartfelt.

I’ve had access to a really good education. I’ve had excellent teachers and space for reflection. And I’ve gained some pretty unique insight into the history, nuances, and insidiousness of racism in America. My Ph.D. focus (Blackness, Jewishness, and Gender in the public sphere) included a rigorous study of first-person accounts by African-Americans, starting in the 18th century (with Phyllis Wheatley) through the 19th century (with the slave narratives of Mary Prince, Mattie J. Jackson, Lucy Delaney, Katie Drumgoold, and Annie L Burton) and into the 20th century (including archival letters penned by black migrants to the Chicago Defender, memos written by members of the Black Women's Club movement, song lyrics, memoirs and personal papers penned by Madame C.J. Walker). And it was all bookended by advanced study and public presentations on the practice, philosophy, and cultural landscape of the black power movement.

I hope I can help lift the burden on Black Americans of educating white people.

Words

“I am not a racist.”
“I am anti-racist.”

The first statement is most often a defense. I usually hear it from people who feel accused and are trying to assert their moral standing through a definitive claim. But that reflexive self-justification often signals something else: a lack of listening. A concern with preserving innocence rather than understanding impact. It centers the speaker’s ego over the experience of others. That posture is not especially anti-racist.

The second statement suggests a different orientation. Claiming an anti-racist identity—especially for white people—means committing to listening, naming our privilege, and confronting bias, including the unconscious kind. It implies action. People who call themselves anti-racist don’t just reject racism in theory; they work against it in practice, across its many forms. At that point, it matters less whether we can say “I’m not a racist” and more whether we are actively opposing racism itself.

In the spirit of growing that anti-racist practice, I want to share the New York Times Anti-Racist Reading List. I haven’t read everything on it yet, but I plan to work through it in the coming months.

New York Times’ Anti-Racist Reading List

Bye for Now

So. Much Love.

Cara