Cover of Racism 101

Racism 101

by Nikki Giovanni · 1994

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In Racism 101, Nikki Giovanni indicts higher education for the inequities it perpetuates, contemplates the legacy of the 1960s, provides a survival guide for black students on predominantly white campuses (complete with razor-sharp comebacks to the dumb questions constantly asked of black students), and excoriates Spike Lee while offering her own ideas for a film about Malcolm X. And that is just for starters. She also writes about W.E.B. Du Bois, gardening, Toni Morrison, Star Trek, affirmative action, space exploration, President John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the role of griots, and the rape and neglect of urban schools. But to reduce Nikki Giovanni's essays to their subjects is to miss altogether their significance. As Virginia C. Fowler writes in her Foreword, "These pieces are artistic expressions of a particular way of looking at the world, featuring a performing voice capable of dizzying displays of virtuosity." Profoundly personal and blisteringly political, angry and funny, lyrical and blunt, Racism 101 will add an important chapter to the debate on American national values.

Subject
sociologysociologyMore like thisLess of this
Themes
raceraceMore like thisLess of thissocial justicesocial justiceMore like thisLess of this
Setting
20th century20th centuryMore like thisLess of thisUSAUSAMore like thisLess of this
Audience
adult
Length
medium · 203 pages
Form
poetrypoetryMore like thisLess of thisessaysessaysMore like thisLess of this

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Liked Racism 101? Here’s where I’d start.

These suit anyone who liked Racism 101. Sign in and mark a few books for picks shaped around your own taste.

  1. The Rage of a Privileged Class Ellis Cose · 1993 Shares race, nonfiction, social justice
  2. White Privilege: Essential Readings on the Other Side of Racism · 2002 Shares race, nonfiction, social justice
  3. Affirmative Action: Racial Preference in Black and White Tim Wise · 2005 Shares race, nonfiction, sociology
  4. Jazz Cleopatra: Josephine Baker in Her Time Phyllis Rose · 1989 Shares nonfiction, race
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“People who read Racism 101 tend to reach for these next.”

  1. Why Black People Tend to Shout: Cold Facts and Wry Views from a Black Man's World Ralph Wiley · 1991
  2. Bullwhip Days: The Slaves Remember: An Oral History · 1988
  3. The Philadelphia Negro: A Social Study W.E.B. Du Bois · 1899
  4. Brainwashed: Challenging the Myth of Black Inferiority Tom Burrell · 2010

“If you want more of the same (sociology about race), start with these.”

  1. White Lies: Race and the Myths of Whiteness Maurice Berger · 1999
  2. What Does It Mean to Be White?: Developing White Racial Literacy Robin DiAngelo · 2012
  3. Uprooting Racism: How White People Can Work for Racial Justice Paul Kivel · 1995
  4. Understanding White Privilege: Creating Pathways To Authentic Relationships Across Race Frances E. Kendall · 2006

“If it was the race that hooked you, try one of these.”

  1. Racism without Racists: Color-Blind Racism and the Persistence of Racial Inequality in the United States Eduardo Bonilla-Silva · 2003
  2. Dear White America: Letter to a New Minority Tim Wise · 2012
  3. White Like Me: Reflections on Race from a Privileged Son Tim Wise · 2004
  4. Colorblind: The Rise of Post-Racial Politics and the Retreat from Racial Equity Tim Wise · 2010

“These start from a similar idea, even if they go somewhere else with it.”

  1. The Law of Higher Education William A. Kaplin · 2006
  2. Run Racist Run: Journeys Into the Heart of Racism Eusebius McKaiser · 2016
  3. Blackballed: The Black and White Politics of Race on America's Campuses Lawrence C. Ross · 2016
  4. Reflections Of An Affirmative Action Baby Stephen L. Carter · 1991

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