Anti-Racism Reading List July 2024

“Companies should consider giving Black and brown people time off to cope with racial trauma after something like witnessing George Floyd’s death on social media. I believe racial trauma should be taken as seriously as a traumatic incident that someone would normally get time off for. Offering time off for racial trauma could be a part of DEI efforts, especially after seeing or experiencing an instance of police brutality firsthand or repeatedly. DEI isn’t just about conferences and conversations, it’s also about being inclusive in your policies.”

“France's colonial history, particularly in Africa and the Caribbean, has significantly shaped its racial dynamics. The colonization of African and Caribbean nations led to a pervasive sense of racial superiority among the French, a sentiment that has been perpetuated through generations. This colonial mentality manifests in various ways, from the exoticization and objectification of Black bodies to systemic discrimination in employment, housing, and law enforcement.”

“This country was founded on the enslaved labor of my ancestors, brutal violence against those who shared my features, and racist systems that continue to impact my daily life.

That’s what I see when I look at your precious stars and stripes.

What did you say, it’s just displaying pride in the country?

Pride about what? Quickly..”

“This is a big fat no. Context is everything. When someone uses the word 'P*ki,' they aren't being nice and commenting on how friendly we are like the 'Aussies’ or ‘Kiwis'; it's simply not used in that way. Perhaps we can revisit this question in time, but it’s none of your business right now. Move on..”

“Bakari Height, the transit equity organizer at the Labor Network for Sustainability, says the global harm caused by the energy transition and the inability of Black Americans to participate in it at home are for a simple reason.

“We’re always on the menu, but we’re never at the table,” he said. “The space of transportation planning and climate change is mostly white people, or people of color that aren’t Black, so these discussions about exploitation aren’t happening in those spaces — it is almost like a second form of colonialism.””

“Apparently, there are a few people on television touting various inaccuracies about “advantages” Black families held during the Jim Crow era. As a descendant of people who were once enslaved, let me be clear on this point: the period of Jim Crow was never nor can it ever be viewed as a period of benefit for Black families.”

“The purpose of this article is to argue that business firms have a moral responsibility to offer reparations to Black people in the United States for racial injustice. In an era when the public and shareholders increasingly demand greater accountability from business firms, it is important to recognize the longstanding role business institutions have played in perpetuating the cultural dehumanization of Blackness.”

“This hypocrisy reveals an industry more interested in maintaining appearances than making fundamental, systemic changes to combat white supremacy and foster an inclusive environment for Black workers. Not to mention the fact that, according to a report from Zippia, 76.1% of chief diversity officer roles are held by white employees, while Black employees hold 3.8%. They sure like to keep it in the family, don't they?”

“whites continue to be disproportionately advantaged in terms of income, wealth, housing, and opportunity relative to other South Africans. Yet, there is an unwillingness among white people to recognise that to be white in South Africa continues to be a primary marker of socio-economic advantage.”

“Montero contends in the book that the primary beneficiaries of the slave economy were not Southern plantation owners — most of whom, he writes, were in debt. Rather, the profits accrued mainly to Northern banks and insurance firms which lent money to those plantation owners, and then invested that money in other industries in the rapidly growing nation, from coal fields to railroads. Many of the loans used the bodies of enslaved people as collateral.”