WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE IN AMERICA? BREAKING THE WHITE CODE OF SILENCE, A COLLECTION OF PERSONAL NARRATIVES, is a collection that asks just that. While the literature on “whiteness” has long been dominated by an academic point of view, editors Gabrielle David and Sean Frederick Forbes came to the realization that there was an unmet need for an anthology of personal narratives about race and culture from the perspective of white Americans. In this conception process, WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE IN AMERICA? was born.
The first of its kind, this collection of 82 personal narratives reflects a vibrant range of stories from white Americans who speak frankly and openly about race, not only as it applies to people of color, but as it applies to themselves. The stories cover a wide gamut of American history from contributors around the United States; from reminiscing about segregation and Jim Crow, to today’s headlines of police brutality, politics and #BlackLivesMatter. In answering the question, some may offer viewpoints one may not necessarily agree with, but nevertheless, it is clear that each contributor is committed to answering it as honestly as possible.
With an introduction by racial justice educator and writer, Debby Irving, and an afterword by award-winning poet, author and scholar, Tara Betts, the purpose of WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE IN AMERICA? is to, as Irving points out in her introduction, “break the code of silence” so that we can engage in frank conversations about race. An invaluable starting point that includes a glossary and a bibliography of suggested reading, WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE IN AMERICA? is highly recommended for students, teachers and anyone else interested in seeking a deeper and richer understanding of race in America.
Contributors
Introduction by Debby Irving
DEBBY IRVING is a racial justice educator, consultant, trainer, public speaker, and the author of the acclaimed book, Waking Up White: And Finding Myself in the Story of Race (2012). Having worked as a community organizer and classroom teacher for twenty-five years, Irving is devoted to working with white people to raise awareness of the differential impacts that interactions, communities, and institutions can have on people along racial lines. Irving’s early career included serving as General Manager of Boston’s Dance Umbrella and later First Night Boston, where she developed outreach programs connecting Boston youth with artists. A graduate of the Winsor School in Boston, Irving holds a BA from Kenyon College and an MBA from Simmons College. She has trained with The People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond, Crossroads Anti-Racism, VISIONS, Lee Mun Wah’s Mindful Facilitation, and has appeared at The White Privilege Conference, NCORE, National Summit for Courageous Conversation, National Race Amity Conference, the People of Color Conference, and Facing Race. An enthusiastic lifelong learner, Irving regularly works with her coach Dr. Eddie Moore Jr., to stay focused on growing beyond white patterns of thought and behavior. She has appeared on numerous television and radio programs, notably MSNBC and Tedx Talk. http://debbyirving.com.
Afterword by Tara Betts
TARA BETTS is an award-winning mixed-race poet, author and scholar of African American and white French descent. Betts received her BA in communication at Loyola University, Chicago, her MFA in creative writing from New England College, and her PhD from Binghamton University. She is the author of several poetry collections and chapbooks, her latest poetry collection Refuse to Disappear (2022). For 2Leaf Press, she is the co-editor of The Beiging of America: Personal Narratives About Being Mixed Race in the Twenty-First Century (2017), wrote the Afterword for What Does It Mean To Be White in America? (2016), the editor of Adventures in Black and White (2018), and a contributor to Black Lives Have Always Mattered (2017), as well as written introductions for several 2Leaf Press poetry collections. Her work has appeared in several radio and television programs, and in numerous journals and anthologies, including POETRY, Ninth Letter, Crab Orchard Review, Essence, Nylon, American Poetry Review, Gathering Ground, Bum Rush the Page, Villanelles, both Spoken Word Revolution anthologies, The Break Beat Poets, Octavia’s Brood: Science Fiction Stories from Social Justice Movements, and GHOST FISHING: An Eco-Justice Poetry Anthology. Betts is a lecturer, independent scholar and editor.
Find out more information about WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE IN AMERICA? contributors.
John Amen
David B. Axelrod
Roger Barbee
Beth Lyon Barnett
Barbara Beckwith
Christina Berchini
Brett Biebel
Lynn Bloom
Tereza Topferova Bottman
Perry Brass
Ann Chandonnet
Martha Collins
Sean Conroy
Marla Cooper
Jason Courtmanche
Josh Couvares
Justine Cozell
Linda A. Crate
Shireen Day
Ray DiZazzo
Carter Douglass
June Elizabeth Dunn
Carol Ehrlich
Sara Estes
Gil Fagiani
Katherine Fishburn
Kurt Michael Friese
Darci Halstead Garcia
Carole Gozansky Garrison
Elena Harap
Amie Heasley
Culley Holderfield
Daniel M. Jaffe
Karen Johnson
Ben Johnston
Alexander Jones
James Kates
Barbara Kellam-Scott
Sidney Kidd
Lauren Kinnard
Emily A. Klein
Keith Kohnhorst
Beth Kwiatek
Abe Lateiner
Maria Lisella
Benjamin V. Marshall
Deborah Mashibini-Prior
Anne Mavor
Patrik McDade
Gregory Mengel
Larry Montague
Chivvis Moore
Leah Mueller
Elena Murphy
Pam Nath
Harmony Neal
Julie Parson Nesbitt
Amy Nocton
Al Ormsby
Meg J. Peterson
Jan Priddy
Kristina Quynn
John B. Railey
Betsy Reeder
Genna Rivieccio
Christopher Rzigalinski
Lorraine Saint Pierre
Bonnie Schell
Samuelson Shain
Sara Sherr
Rebell Sowell
Janie Starr
Gil Steinlauf
Susan Sterling
Becky Swanberg
Sam Tanner
Jamie Utt
Julie Wang
Wendy Warren
Carol Weliky
Ariane White
Adam Wier
Readers' Reviews
AMAZON
In 1949 as a freshman in high school in the California Bay area, I was a member of the “Pachuco’s”, a group of teenage Mexican hoodlums who accepted me in spite of being a “Gringo”. Our weekend entertainment was to pile in a ’39 Buick, 6 or 7 at a time, and drive to East Oakland to find a small group of Tinto Cabrones” (Black expletive) and chase them, usually with little physical contact, until one day a young black man turned and knocked me on my keister. I then decided this was not my life as a privileged white boy. I’m not sure had I read this group of essays my life would have been different, but I hope my grandchildren will profit. One essay in particular stuck in my heart- page 323 – Liza Pearl. I am grateful to the contributors, editors, and the publisher for their hard work in bringing this work to life, and I hope it gets the attention it deserves. George Mahoney (5/2/2016)
AMAZON
A friend of mine recommended this book to me. At first I was a bit intimidated by the sheer length of the book, but after opening it I realized that it is broken into numerous short essays representing a range of experiences of being white in America. This book is teaching me so much! Mary Popeo (9/30/16)
AMAZON
Big book I’m reading in increments, each essay or memoir something that long after haunts the mind. Kind and shocking in places at the same time. Insight and stupidity. Everyday lives of prejudice and predicament. The towering presence of ancestors on behavior and thought. Bonniebelle (6/2/2016)
AMAZON
Thoughtful essays by white Americans on white privilege and their responses to ongoing and overt racism in America. Julie C. Wang (10/6/2016)
AMAZON
This collection of essays is unique in many ways and I applaud the editors for reaching out to such a diverse array of white folks and to the white folks for being willing to share their experiences of being white in a racist county. The introduction and summary that bookends the essays deserve a rave review of a five, both for the idea of compiling the experiences of white people in the first place and for their wisdom and theoretical perspectives in commenting on the collection. Reading the essays was like riding a roller coaster of emotions and thoughts for me from respect for some folks’ honesty to dismay to irritation to admiration to identification to anger to learning. The large number of essays and the length of the book left me a bit overwhelmed and spent after having been “let in” to such a broad range of experiences. Much of what was written I have heard before during decades of teaching about racism and oppression and struggling with my own consciousness of racism, my own and others, the pain of taking responsibility as a white person without caveats, excuses, guilt, and a multiple of other reactions. The essays that sang to me were the ones where white people took responsibility for their own racism and participation in a racist institutional system without any explanation that would lighten, even inadvertently, the weight of responsibility that falls squarely on our shoulders as white people. The essays that were the most difficult for me to relate to challenged me to empathize and try to understand, essential factors in taking responsibility as a white ally. DJVS (5/14/2016)
AMAZON
I didn’t have to read this book; I chose to, and I’m glad I did. . . .The takeaway for me, a white, Jewish, New York woman in my 60s, is that there’s much more than race that determines how white Americans perceive ourselves or Americans of color: geography, class, and ethnicity all play a role. I’ve witnessed and experienced prejudice from both sides of the divide, but I know that being white overrides many other variables. One essay reminds us that James Baldwin said “Being white means never having to think about it.” I don’t usually wonder whether I’m being treated one way or another because of my race, but I know that if I were black, I would think about it all the time. My despair over that disparity is why I choose to read about it and talk about it, and fervently hope to change it. . . . The essays are revealing, heartfelt, and true, and are valuable for any discussion of race in America. I heartily recommend “What Does It Mean To Be White In America” to anyone who plans to participate in that discussion. [Excerpt] Marciam (12/15/2016)
AMAZON
When I saw the title of this anthology, I first thought, “Does the dominant race in this country really need another platform to highlight itself? To put itself front and center?” . . . . But then I began to read these essays. Personal. Political. Informative. Uncomfortable. Confessional. Angry. Frustrated. Polished. Unpolished. Offensive. Affirming. Challenging. Essays that reveal the many shades of “white” in this country. Shades foreign to me. From shades that explore the most overt examples of systemic racism, to the shades of quiet self-awareness in seeing one’s own surprising racism. . . . This anthology does not replace my fervor to read the writings from people of color; it is now their companion. This is not a quick read. It is not an easy read. But it is an important read. A read I will revisit time and again. [Excerpt] Cindy O’Brien (4/25/2016)
AMAZON
This book is a must read for all people of color. I am African-American and have had the opportunity and experience of working against racism for over 50 years. One challenge has always been developing sufficient empathy and trust in the Euro-American allies who I have encountered along the way. The struggle resulted from a discounting of their pain in comparison with my own. As I read “What does it mean to be White in America” the fog lifted. I expect that my collaborations will come more easily in the future and our work together to dismantle White supremacy will be more effective. The pain of being White is as palpable as the pain of being Black, Brown. Yellow, or Red in America. Read this book and enable yourself to better understand and care about our allies. Robert L. Atwell, Psy.D., Past President of the Association of Black Psychologists (4/18/2016)
AMAZON
The reason I have been so taken by these personal narratives is because the editors chose a very diverse group of white people who give a variety of perspectives, beliefs, and experiences related to the concept of being white today in the U.S. They are not all racial justice activists. Christina Berchini brilliantly writes about why the book seriously breaks an old rule: “Don’t talk about being white.” as the reader learns from her about different primers and rules people grew up with and hold today. I have been a teacher and Samuel Tanner’s “White People are Crazy” as well as a few other stories helped me better grasp what goes on in the classroom concerning this topic and how teachers and students are addressing and struggling with it. In reading the book I learned a great deal more about my white identity and noticed my personal challenges. The bottom line: This book is a necessary “wake-up call” that should get a great deal of attention and bring up very needed dialogues. Holly M. Fulton (4/21/16)
AMAZON
This is a collection of essays written by White people about their experience of being White, or becoming aware of their Whiteness. There are 82 of these essays. I have had the chance to read some of them. I find them very engaging and insightful. There is also an introductory chapter that discusses racial theory and language used to talk about racism. This will be useful for folks who have not read widely in this area, to understand better how the 83 authors are talking.
For any of us White Americans who have awakened to Race in America, we work to understand what has happened to us, and is continuing to happen as we participate in and express our own Racism. For me, reading these has been like a dialog that helps me reflect on my life, and gives me inspiration to develop my own story, and deepen my understanding. At 680 pages this book will be a long read, taken in bites with lots of meditation in-between. I will be living with it for a while. johnny buyer (4/15/2016)
AMAZON
This book fills a much needed gap in the study of racial literacy. It will be an especially useful text, I believe, in college courses — where so many white students lack the ability to imagine, much less think analytically about, the reasons to understand their raced position in capitalist systems. Tara Betts’s afterword is, in itself, a reason to get this book. The size and scope of “What Does it Mean to Be White in America” shape an important document, and a very timely one, when we are so in need of new ways forward. C. Raymond (5/1/2016)
AMAZON
A valuable resource for White allies looking to engage in the race conversation in a productive and honest way. This book, the brainchild of editors Gabrielle David and Sean Frederick Forbes, asks White Americans to share personal narratives acknowledging and discussing their Whiteness. White silence on the topic of race (and racism) prevents us, as a nation, from healing and repairing the terrors we and our ancestors have wrought. This book gives us what we need to read, listen, learn, and then – start to speak out. Kathryn Rosenberg (4/24/2016)
AMAZON
This book should be read by every American, white, black or any other color. I was surprised how honest these writers were whether writing of their pain at confronting their white-skin privilege or showing their racism. It runs the gamut and that’s what’s so great about it. The essays are mostly quite short, mostly very well written and, best of all, made me really think and examine my own beliefs and privilege. S. Polishuk (9/12/2016)
CommonBookSense Blog
I’m not going to lie, my initial thought was that I wouldn’t be touching this one with a ten-foot pole. After all, I am a white female who wants nothing to do with the race war currently consuming the country. I grew up in the bible belt, even better a small town in Alabama (that is probably still considered one of the most racist places in the country), and I knew reviewing “What Does It Mean To Be White In America?” would mean that I’d need to share some of my personal feelings, which I honestly wasn’t sure that I wanted to do on CommonBookSense. Then I thought about it….like really thought about it, and realized how absurd that sounded.
“What Does It Mean To Be White In America?” is a book that every (that’s right EVERY) person in this country, regardless of race, should be required to read. PERIOD. It’s comprised of 82 stories that were written by white Americans from all over the country. The need for political correctness was waived….and a brilliant collection of much needed thoughts, opinions, and personal reflection was created. Shell (8/17/2016)
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