Do Better

December 15, 2020
A holistic how-to guide for people of all backgrounds willing to look inward in their fight against racial injustice. White supremacy is a systemic issue, but it starts and is perpetuated in "hearts and minds," writes Ricketts, a queer Black woman and "trained racial justice educator, attorney, grief coach, and spiritual activist." The battle for justice must be fought on both fronts, but White people typically fight racism as something outside of themselves, as a matter of comfort. Ricketts, however, refuses to coddle readers. Those who most need her guidance to do the "deep inner work" of anti-racism may be the least willing to stay the course. Her righteous, "loving anger" shines through on every page. She warns White women, in particular, that they will not like what she has to say. But it is to their advantage to keep reading this challenging but hopeful extension of the author's in-person workshops, designed for "all those who are ready to fight for a more equitable world, in which everyone, most notably Black and Indigenous women+, can finally find freedom." With a 20-page glossary of terms to help meet readers where they are, the book is exhaustive in its breadth and depth. Ricketts examines the consistent insidiousness of racism, from "friendship fails" to inequity in the workplace. She unpacks concepts such as prejudice, privilege, anti-Indigeneity, and decolonization, and she explores the differences among anti-Blackness, racism, and White supremacy. Ricketts speaks directly to readers via blunt, infectious, and at times humorous prose, including deeply personal anecdotes of her experiences of racism, which began in early childhood. Practical action items--e.g., meditations, affirmations, writing prompts, and "heart check-ins"--will get readers "spiritually activated" and able to work through the defensiveness and fear that can hinder growth beyond the superficial. A soulful, essential boot-camp-in-a-book that raises the bar significantly in the field of anti-racism training.

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Starred review from January 1, 2021

Racial justice educator and spiritual activist Ricketts offers tools for healing and liberation that anyone can use, with questions directed to individuals based on their identities and their comfort with social justice. This book is about internal work, especially work that is necessary for white people to undertake in order to avoid performative activism. It also calls for individuals to lean into the ways in which we uphold white supremacy by participating in racist institutions, so that we can all contribute to a more just society. Ricketts acknowledges that people might be scared to start engaging in antiracist work, and afraid of making mistakes. With that in mind, she offers an approachable entry point to key concepts and terms, such as intersectionality. A section on emotional violence caused by gaslighting or silence is particularly impactful. The glossary she has compiled, along with her careful notes about how she does not speak for everyone, illuminate many of the discursive and action-based errors people with privilege make when they do not take the time to learn before asking, speaking, or acting. VERDICT Meticulously researched, compassionate, and bold, this book should be read immediately and frequently returned to as a textual companion for the ongoing, reiterative work of antiracism.--Emily Bowles, Lawrence Univ., WI

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