I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness by Austin Channing Brown
Since the 2020 BLM movement, I’ve been making an active and sustained effort to improve my understanding of racism, anti-racism, and how I can make individual changes to play my part in creating a more equitable world.
Austin Channing Brown’s I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness is a concise book bursting with voice and intelligent dissection of race relations and intersectionality—all told with Brown’s trademark storytelling knack. She’s able to draw on personal experience, and tie those anecdotes into larger societal narratives in a way that’s effortlessly readable (or, in my case, listenable. The audiobook, narrated by Brown, is terrific.)
Of particular note to me were Brown’s observations about how white organizations often fail to deliver cultural change and better equity and inclusion by hiding behind passive talks and seminars, often aimed at the bulk of lower-level employees, instead of engaging in active change from the top down. It’s a brilliant book, and Brown covers a breathtaking amount of ground within its short page count.