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Letters to My White Male Friends

Letters to My White Male Friends

by Dax-Devlon Ross

St. Martin's Press ·2021 ·240 pages
Best of 2021
Top of the Pile
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84/99
Top of the Pile

83/99

Critics' Rating Index

Top of the Pile

85/99

Readers' Rating Index

n/a

Scholars' Citation Index

15/99

Volume of Reviews

21/99

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About This Book

In Letters to My White Male Friends , Dax-Devlon Ross speaks directly to the millions of middle-aged white men who are suddenly awakening to race and racism. White men are finally realizing that simply not being racist isn't enough to end racism. These men want deeper insight not only into how racism has harmed Black people, but, for the first time, into how it has harmed them . They are beginning to see that racism warps us all. Letters to My White Male Friends promises to help men who have said they are committed to change and to develop the capacity to see, feel and sustain that commitment so they can help secure racial justice for us all. Ross helps readers understand what it meant to be America's first generation raised after the civil rights era. He explains how we were all educated with colorblind narratives and symbols that typically, albeit implicitly, privileged whiteness and denigrated Blackness. He provides the context and color of his own experiences in white schools so that white men can revisit moments in their lives where racism was in the room even when they didn't see it enter. Ross shows how learning to see the harm that racism did to him, and forgiving himself, gave him the empathy to see the harm it does to white people as well. Ultimately, Ross offers white men direction so that they can take just action in their workplace, community, family, and, most importantly, in themselves, especially in the future when race is no longer in the spotlight.


Reviews

"Ross's original post was aimed at people in the non-profit sector."

Sebastien Stockman· The Boston Globe Read review ↗ Top of the Pile

"Ross folds analyses of Supreme Court rulings, gentrification, the 'war on drugs,' and income disparities into his candid personal reflections, and offers a useful framework for how white men, in particular, can 'shift culture and advance equity' by paying attention to how they receive feedback and by drawing on their own feelings of powerlessness to empathize with marginalized groups."

Publishers Weekly Read review ↗ Top of the Pile

"The letters are consistently compelling, covering wide ground that includes the broken criminal justice system, gentrification, and the problem with framing equity work as 'charity.' Finally, Ross offers practical guidance and solutions for White men to employ at work, in their communities, and within themselves ..."

Kirkus Read review ↗ Top of the Pile

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