How to be an Antiracist

If you’ve ever wondered why discussions about race remain so intense, it’s because racism still shapes our everyday realities. The central idea here is that a person is never just “not racist.” We are either supporting racism or actively opposing it. This is a radical notion that urges us to question our own thoughts and behaviors.

Throughout these pages, you’ll see that racism isn’t merely about hateful slurs or overt violence. It’s a system that arises from policies designed to maintain inequalities among racial groups. The book encourages us to shift from complacency to a deeper engagement with the world around us.

In rethinking racism, it helps to recognize that many of us have absorbed harmful assumptions by default. We might not see ourselves as bigots, yet still believe or perpetuate ideas that undermine others. The next chapters explore how to break free from this cycle and become part of a more just solution.

The book traces the roots of racism to the need for economic and political gains. Historically, European powers invented the concept of race to justify the enslavement and exploitation of non-Europeans. Over time, these justifications evolved into myths of biological difference.

Such myths persuaded entire nations that people from Africa, for instance, were naturally suited for servitude. Narratives portraying Black bodies as inferior and even dangerous soon followed and spread like wildfire, reinforcing oppressive systems.

Whenever these myths started to falter, new theories emerged, each offering a fresh rationale for placing one group above another. Racism is never static; it constantly adapts, borrowing from science, religion, or any other authority that will lend it credibility.