Join us Saturday, April 15th to discuss White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo. The discussion will be facilitated by Linda Malik, who warns that this can be a very provocative topic. No matter how liberal people “think” they are, many are likely to take issue around things in this book. But White people have to learn to be uncomfortable talking about race if we ever want to live in a truly compassionate, anti-racist country. This is what White Fragility goes into.

About the book (from Amazon.com):

In this “vital, necessary, and beautiful book” (Michael Eric Dyson), antiracist educator Robin DiAngelo deftly illuminates the phenomenon of white fragility and “allows us to understand racism as a practice not restricted to ‘bad people’ (Claudia Rankine). Referring to the defensive moves that white people make when challenged racially, white fragility is characterized by emotions such as anger, fear, and guilt, and by behaviors including argumentation and silence. These behaviors, in turn, function to reinstate white racial equilibrium and prevent any meaningful cross-racial dialogue. In this in-depth exploration, DiAngelo examines how white fragility develops, how it protects racial inequality, and what we can do to engage more constructively.

Find us in the Community Room, just to your right as you enter the library!

While we have included a link to the book on Amazon (and if you use that link, we will earn a 10% commission), we always encourage use of public libraries. In addition to the excellent Onondaga County Public Libraries, New York State residents can get a New York (City) Public Library card to get access to e-books and audiobooks held by the NYPL, such as this book club read!