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mcbibliotecaria's review against another edition
4.0
Okay I'm cheating a little bit with this. Still got another chapter to go. But this book is a reference text book basically. All data and absolutely important information but taken as a whole it's just too much to read straight through. This is all data and great for citing but on it's own, exhausting.
res_curans's review
2.0
Racism Without Racists argues that, after the 1960s Civil Rights Movement and the abolition of Jim Crow, racism has not gone away, but merely gone underground, using more covert methods to maintain the status quo. He calls these methods collectively “colorblind racism” — a set of racist practices and mythologies that appear nonracial, but which serve to perpetuate the state of race in the U.S.
He identifies and debunks a lot of the common myths that people repeat, such as “race just isn’t a big deal anymore” and “a black person stole my job.” But some of the colorblind-racist “strategies” he identifies are more like ideologies, such as liberal economics. So I think there are some is-ought problems when, for example, he says an ideology preserves the status quo, but are his leftist politics and political correctness the necessary solution?
White Fragility did a better job of illustrating specific ways that “colorblind” racism actually plays out - this book seemed bloated with too much on the “is” and not enough argument on the “ought.” The analysis seemed targeted primarily to people who already agree with him, especially when it comes to the political content. I respect the work that went into this - this is by far the most academic of the antiracist literature I’ve read thus far - but I didn’t find much of value personally.
Honestly, what I'm looking for is a knock-down argument that I can hand to my conservative relatives to dismantle their worldview, but I haven't found one yet.
He identifies and debunks a lot of the common myths that people repeat, such as “race just isn’t a big deal anymore” and “a black person stole my job.” But some of the colorblind-racist “strategies” he identifies are more like ideologies, such as liberal economics. So I think there are some is-ought problems when, for example, he says an ideology preserves the status quo, but are his leftist politics and political correctness the necessary solution?
White Fragility did a better job of illustrating specific ways that “colorblind” racism actually plays out - this book seemed bloated with too much on the “is” and not enough argument on the “ought.” The analysis seemed targeted primarily to people who already agree with him, especially when it comes to the political content. I respect the work that went into this - this is by far the most academic of the antiracist literature I’ve read thus far - but I didn’t find much of value personally.
Honestly, what I'm looking for is a knock-down argument that I can hand to my conservative relatives to dismantle their worldview, but I haven't found one yet.
colleen_corleone's review against another edition
I jumped around to see if it'd be worth the torture, and NOPE. It sure as shit ain't!
Who is this for? Is it meant to be read for a doctoral review?! Why is it so tedious, dull, and repetitive?
I am PRESSED about the "endnotes". Why are there 5-10 endnotes on every fucking page at the beginning. One of the notes is the author quoting this fucking book!
If it's truly important enough to put so many on each page, make them footnotes. I DO NOT want to have to refer to the back of the book every other sentence, fuck you very much.
"Saying you know a black person doesn't mean you're not racist" doesn't need this much repeating!
WHO IS THIS FOR!?
Who is this for? Is it meant to be read for a doctoral review?! Why is it so tedious, dull, and repetitive?
I am PRESSED about the "endnotes". Why are there 5-10 endnotes on every fucking page at the beginning. One of the notes is the author quoting this fucking book!
If it's truly important enough to put so many on each page, make them footnotes. I DO NOT want to have to refer to the back of the book every other sentence, fuck you very much.
"Saying you know a black person doesn't mean you're not racist" doesn't need this much repeating!
WHO IS THIS FOR!?
unruhlysarah's review against another edition
5.0
In conjunction with other writings on Critical Race Theory, I feel more prepared for discussing the systemic racism in American society. This book does an excellent job of explaining the New Racism, what it sounds like, and how to combat it. There is a particularly illuminating chapter examining the Obama presidency and the last two chapters on social movements and where to go from here are galvanizing. Please read and share!
bookw0rm93's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
danijoy's review against another edition
4.0
Bonilla-Silva skillfully delivered his theory of color blindness to his readers. It’s a theory that makes complete sense when you hear it. I thought his arguments were sound and well evidenced. His final words were perhaps a bit harsh towards those of us who’ve tried to avoid getting in the middle of tense racial relations in politics. I don’t disagree with the delivery, but I wish he’d given more specific smaller steps we can take in our everyday lives to move closer towards MLK’s dream of true equality in this country (but I think that might’ve been the point - he wants his readers to come up with ideas on how to do this themselves). I’d also be interested in the author’s thoughts post-2020 election. He discussed the Obama era and what led to the 2016 election - what does Biden’s win mean for Black Americans? Is there hope that it’s not too late to overturn the reign of color blindness and the systemic racial inequalities that make up the fabric of our country?