Hi! I am a member of a race education group in my school (11 to 18) and we are creating a reading list for the library. Our library isn’t very diverse right now (most books are written by white people about the West) and we need books on race education (privilege, discrimination, etc.) and on the history (precolonial, colonial and postcolonial, could be on neocolonialism too) and culture of underrepresented people.
Please keep in mind that these books should be acceptable by the school and approachable by students who would be unlikely to accept or read very progressive material, so themes that strongly (just strongly) contradict Western narratives should be avoided.
For example, a book on the colonisation of Palestine that exposes the oppressive nature of Zionism is mostly fine, but a book presenting Hamas as a liberation group would not be accepted (and actually illegal in my country).
You can reply with books or other reading lists that we could then review and add. I’ll finish this post with some examples of books on the reading list (keep in mind that it was for Black History Month, so all of the examples are on black people):
African Empires by Lyndon, Dan
Black Power: The Politics of Liberation In America by Carmichael, Stokely; Hamilton, Charles V
I Heard What You Said by Boakye, Jeffrey
The Assassination of Lumumba by Witte, Ludo de.
White privilege: the myth of a post-racial society by Bhopal, Kalwant
Thanks in advance!
Dune by Frank Herbert, it does a good job taking problems with our world and framing them in a fictional context. Like the struggle of the Fremen and unregulated capitalism.
The Underground Railroad this was required reading when I was in school. It’s quite significant and about the struggles of slavery in America.
The Penguin Book of Japanese Short Stories This collection of short stories tries to illustrate various morals and experiences. Like how the western world glossed over the struggles of Japanese people soon after the nuclear bombings.
The Satanic Verses This one is a hard sell, especially given the constraints you’ve set. Put bluntly it’s a mockery of biblical texts, but it’s highlighting the whimsical nature of religion and its chilling effects. People have been murdered over this book and I feel it wouldn’t be fair to those who have died not to mention it here.
Thank you! We may have to more carefully consider adding The Satanic Verses, but the rest of the books look like great choices!
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Between_the_World_and_Me
This might be a good one.
Thanks! I will be adding this book; looks like a good introduction into the history and nature of blackness in America.
Might be pushing the limits, but https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_People's_History_of_the_United_States (and books inspired by it) is a great book, and there’s also a graphic novel version: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_People's_History_of_American_Empire
We actually already have this book on the reading list, although your help is greatly appreciated. I’ll be sure to read it if it’s available locally, though!
Major Taylor was one of the first big international sporting celebrities of any human race in a much more deeply troubled time, before cars were a thing anyone around would have owned. It really contrasts how Europe was at the time versus how backwards the United States was at the time and shines a light on how things have or have not changed. It is a genuinely good read too.
Thanks! I don’t think we have any books on sports on the reading list, so I’ll definitely be adding this one.
These are probably too progressive for your school but I highly recommend them to anyone outside of school.
Ibram X. Kendi, Stamped From The Beginning and How To Be An Antiracist are incredible books.
Thanks for the suggestions! Can you clarify the potential issues with the books? Looking at their Wikipedia page (and despite Stamped from the Beginning being censored), I doubt the books would be rejected from the reading list.
Dr. Kendi is at the forefront of antiracism and many (if not most) American conservatives see antiracism as actual racism and propaganda to make white people feel bad. Having read these I can definitely say that’s not what Dr. Kendi is about. Your students are old enough to learn the truth about this and I’m so happy you are able to teach them about this subject. There are a couple of other books he has written and contributed to for younger people, too.
These are books that would be banned from many schools in conservative America. I’m so glad you may be able to offer them to your students!
In that case, it won’t be a problem (the school is not in America) as we already have books on antiracism, white privilege and other topics that would be controversial in conservative America. (see the example books on the original post for reference)
I am definitely grateful that we are able to share such books without strong backlash and flawed criticisms being directed towards the reading list and hopefully the group can educate others to think more critically on these underrepresented topics!
