Do Better: Spiritual Activism for Fighting and Healing from White Supremacy by Rachel Ricketts

Do Better: Spiritual Activism for Fighting and Healing from White Supremacy Reviews

• 
  Jessica

  The reviews of this book to date have either hailed this as The Book that everyone needs to read right this second, or they've griped about Ricketts' use of curse words, so allow me to hopefully add a more nuanced review.
  
  Ricketts uses a combination of personal stories, statistics, necessarily harsh truths about the state of the world, and guided exercises (journaling and meditation) to help the reader gain better insights into both the extent of structural and institutional racism and the extent of their own interconnection with said structures. She frequently uses the term "oppressed oppressor" to point out the ways that an individual can experience both privilege and marginalization due to their many intersecting identities, and over and over again points to queer and trans Black and Indigeneous women and femmes as the people who have the most wisdom to share about dismantling our current structures. She shares powerful stories that highlight the comprehensive toll that our oppressive systems can take on an individual person and makes it crystal clear why we (particularly white people) shouldn't try to tone down others' anger about their experiences or tell them the "right" way to make change.
  
  All of that content comes after the first quarter of the book, which is going to be a barrier to a lot of people, and not just in the usual "learning about racism is hard for white people and their feelings are going to be hurt by the author not pulling any punches." At the end of that first quarter I was still being told to prepare myself for "the journey you're about to take" — that entire first section was basically just using really strong language to emphasize how hard the rest of the book was going to be for me. It's unclear to me who Ricketts envisions her audience to be, someone who needs terms like "pansexual" defined in a glossary but who won't blink at the use of "AF" and "Periodt." It's also not clear why there is a glossary, as anytime Ricketts uses a word with even a hint more nuance than you'd get from a dictionary definition, she includes her definition of the word in the text itself. But because the words in the glossary are noted with an asterisk the first time they're used, the beginning of the book — with asterisks, abbreviations, plus signs, Gen Z slang, and conversational sentence fragments — was genuinely difficult for my brain to process. Thankfully, I pressed on, and Ricketts settled into some longer, more comprehensive thoughts that I could follow more easily.
  
  However, for all of Ricketts' focus on terminology, I had a hard time following some of her choices, which weren't explained in detail. For example, she uses "humxn" instead of "human" (even to the point of editing quotations from other people, like MLK, to update this terminology), but she rejects "womxn" because of the implication that "woman/women" doesn't already include trans women, but then she turns around and uses "women+" (or sometimes "women and femmes") without really explaining why that's different. Then she uses "woman+" and "women+" in contexts it doesn't even make sense in, like talking about a single person (who presumably just has one gender identity and doesn't need an umbrella term) or when talking about pregnancy, rather than actually being trans-inclusive and just talking about pregnant people (or "folx," as she would say). She also conflates gender and sexual orientation more than once, such as saying that heterosexual people are inherently transphobic in the way that white people are racist and non-disabled people are ableist, effectively erasing the heterosexual trans people out there. I'm all for using the most inclusive language, but if you're going to ask your reader to adapt to a bunch of unfamiliar spellings for the sake of being uber-inclusive, it would help to provide some more context and then use your terms consistently and inclusively.
  
  I also struggle with someone going above and beyond to demonstrate their inclusiveness and then including some controversial takes without explanation or nuance. For example, while I don't fault her choice to help her mother take her own life after the immense suffering her mother suffered at the hands of the medical establishment, I was surprised by her choice to use the term "suicide" and by her very clear (and ableist) statement that it's better to die than live with chronic pain. She also unapologetically says that Latinx people are not people of color (unless they're Afro-Latinx, etc.), that they are white, not white-passing, and that as such they have just as much white privilege and complicity in white supremacy as any other white person. Which is, to put it mildly, a very strong take to just put out there and not spend any more time on. She also has harsh things to say about people who appropriate practices like yoga and meditation without a deep connection to the communities they come from, but it's unclear how her own practice of these — and indeed, inclusion in the book of many meditative exercises — is OK because she includes a sentence telling you to "give thanks to the ancient Indian elders who cultivated this potent practice" at the end.
  
  I think Ricketts does an absolutely excellent job laying out the existing problems through statistics and stories, and I think she is skilled in leading an individual reader through introspective exercises to help them reflect and feel equipped to take on the challenge of working for racial justice. She provides some helpful breakdowns of ways that white people should and should not use their voice/privilege (like, calling out other white people for their racism is great, while getting paid to educate white people on racism in place of Black, Indigenous, and other people of color is not great). She also does (in my limited opinion) a great job writing for an audience of diverse races. For these reasons, I think there's a lot of value to get out of this book — again, if you can get past the very long sections at the front that tee up the content of the rest of the book.
  
  However, I don't think Ricketts does a particularly good job of spelling out what it looks like to actually work for racial justice, except for a couple of examples in specific contexts (e.g., when in a position of power at work). She has tons of rhetoric about tearing down / uprooting the entire system of white supremacist heteropatriarchy and why small fixes aren't going to solve the problem, but it's not clear what destroying an entire social system actually looks like in practice, and I don't think Ricketts has the answer, which can make her fire-and-brimstone rhetoric feel empty as times. She says, "White folx cannot love, donate, vote, volunteer, post, or read their way out of racism. Ending oppression, of any form, demands much more." But it's not clear what that "much more" is, and why — given her common refrain throughout the book of who should be leading the charge — donating to, voting for, reading, posting about, and volunteering for the movements of "queer and trans Black and Indigenous women+" aren't the right next steps.
  
  I'm honestly a little hesitant to post this review because I feel like Ricketts has set up a dichotomy whereby if you have any criticisms at all of this book, it's because your heart is hardened by white supremacy and you're not open to learning about the realities of racism in your own life, or because the book wasn't catered enough to your "white gaze." Who knows, maybe she's right. But I've read a lot of books in this vein and I feel like I have a pretty good measure of how they each compare in terms of actionability, clarity, consistency, and inclusiveness, and this one, to me, is just middle of the road.
• 
  Kaytee Cobb

  Fucking incredible. Light a fire under your ass and read this. Also, note that the language used here is reflective of the text. You'll be okay.
• 
  Bethan

  Firstly, anyone upset by the language used in this book (which isn’t even excessive?!) and has given a 1-2* review or not even finished the book needs to reassess their choice. I imagine (and judging by those reviews) it’s mainly us white people who have been triggered by the book and it’s direct approach on how we all are racist (because we are) don’t like being told that so have tried to scapegoat a way out.
  
  This book is so much more than a few curse words and the fact that you’ve all given up because of that or down-rated it because of that is abhorrent and only further perpetuating white supremacy. Grit your teeth and move passed it because the message of this book needs to be engrained in us.
  
  This is a crucial read, one that every white person should read, digest, share and then act on (myself included as a white cis woman). Rachel writes from a personal perspective backed up by cold hard facts, so all these people saying ‘no not me’ or ‘I wouldn’t’ etc etc, the facts are there people also stop questioning BIPOCs lived experiences.
  
  For the people that received this book for free, go and buy a copy. There are plenty of books that aren’t as relevant and as needed as this book to get for free, please spend your money and support the author financially for her work. For work that shouldn’t be needed but because we can’t seem to get our shit together we’ve had to ask a black woman+ to literally spell it out for us, to relive painful memories to try and get us white people to understand basic humanity.
  And if you did receive for free and all you can say is ‘great book, thanks to bla bla for a free copy’ you’re lazy as fuck.
  
  I’ll wrap it up by saying this isn’t a book we should read once (by we I mean white people) we need to read this, do the work, re-read, re-adjust and keep moving, as Rachel said this is life-long work for us white people. Our slates are not wiped clean because we read a couple of books one time.
• 
  Nikki Gorman

  The three-star review as written by user Jessica pretty much encapsulates all of my feelings about this book, and is written so well that I’m not going to waste my time trying to analyze this book any more than she did. I will say what still sticks out as one of the sharpest thorns from this text was Ricketts nonchalantly stating that Latino/a/e/x peoples are white…I’m pretty sure that the Latinx people I know would find that statement highly problematic (as do I). I’d say 3 stars for effort and adding to the cannon of antiracist literature, 2.5 stars for the actual content, and 2 stars for editing (I think different editing choices could’ve made this a stronger work all around).
• 
  Andrea

  *I received this book from NetGalley in return for a honest review*
  
  This book is both easy to read and extremely challenging, Rachel has a way of writing that draws you in and makes you think about the world in a way differently than you have been. Through a whole variety of topics the author delves deep into the ways that White Supremacy infiltrates every part of life and how to address these issues from a rounded and spiritual approach. Each chapter ends with concrete and practical steps to take and where we are not doing enough.
  
  This book is challenging, personal, and deep and is a book that everyone should read.
• 
  Allison Krulik

  Interesting read! Thank you to the publisher for a free copy, I enjoyed it!
• 
  Kenzie Brenna

  This book is absolutely incredible. I've read quite a bit of anti-racist books and Rachel hit's home like no other. It hits you so personally and the journal prompts and meditation prompts are incredible. I found myself lost in her stories and also heavy with reflection upon my own white supremacy. Grateful that this book exists and it's absolutely imperative for people to read!
• 
  Jo

  Nix the copy of Robin DiAngelo's White Fragility (she's problematic AF) and read this instead. Essential reading for unlearning white supremacy.
• 
  K

  Picked us up from my local library because it’s a brand new print and the title alone sounded pretty engaging. I have my doubts about what “spiritual activism” has to do with actual activism, or how that will really fight white supremacy. I wanted to give it higher stars but the more I read it the more it felt like less of a book and more like a diary.
  
  I already don’t really like how this book was set up to encourage the reader to like it. The back cover is filled with praise quotes, the very first page before the copyright is praise quotes. It doesn’t even have a summary, in my edition the summary is on the inside book flap mixed in with the history of the author. The other side of the book flap is about her but its set up like an odd dating profile? It talks about how she likes donuts and hosts seminars, and is a “global thought leader”. I did like the overall graphic design though.
  
  I feel like a book with this kind of subject matter should be a lot more tongue in cheek but this feels very laid-back, and I guess that’s the point but it becomes less informative and historically important when it’s clearly just a book about her opinions. Thank goodness this book has a reference section, I get tired of books that don’t bother to list sources or fact sheets. However it does lack any statistics or important movements, ranging from Stonewall to MLK. You know, important historical events that were impacted, pushed by, furthered, or ended by white supremacy
  
  I think this book suffers from trying to be too inclusive, as other reviewer‘s have said it will separate others while at the same time trying to be inclusive with a fractal effect; using very specific words to either niche or well-known peoples/groups/identities. LGBTTQA+, LGBTTQQIAAP+, sigh. I’m just not a big fan of this trend, constantly having to label every single person by race/gender/sex. It’s already been stated the weird use of language, like folx, is off putting, why write a book designed to be inclusive and informative when the people who attempt to read it keep reviewing that they get confused by it. I feel like you can also tell what she cared about more by how she gave definitions and details to certain things or talked about more things in depth. This is really apparent whenever she’ll have a run on sentence and then at the last minute add something like “and Indigenous folx”.
  
  It’s hard to read this kind of book and not feel that the writer has some kind of vendetta against their society, which is valid, HAVE YOU SEEN the state of it. But it becomes depressing quickly when the writer doesn’t say anything positive either. Like fighting for rights or how far we have come in general, it’s almost like a mentality of it’s never good enough when we should be happy we’ve even come this far.
  
  The book doesn’t really even touch on the institutions, political state of, voting habits, religious aspects, etc etc of oppression. It’s just rambling and thick sentences of adjectives and PC speech. There’s a section on spiritual bypassing and emotional violence, that is more like a small four page self-help section to pass off not needing to bring up religious narrative or real effort.
  
  At the end of the day this book is clearly the opinions and viewpoints of Rachel Rickett, it’s essentially her giving her input and her own view of the world for all to read. It’s essentially demanding that you listen to what she has to say and not critique it or change the opinion on it, because she doesn’t even offer any different ones from her own. For example: AAVE, she says if you aren’t black you aren’t allowed to use the word “yo”, and that doing so is appropriative and harmful.
  
  The author talks about how a lot of what she wrote was out of anger, and that is very clearly evident, it doesn’t really seem like she’s ever had a wholesome relationship with a friend she could trust?? This just circles back to me talking about how it’s a very depressing read because she doesn’t offer anything positive. She will just go on rants about how there’s no safe place for specifically black women, that all white men and women are inherently bad in someway, cis too, it just isolates your audience and makes you look like just as big of a bigot if you honestly can’t see a random white man walking down the street without being angry for him merely existing.
  
  These kind of Tumblr rant books that have only ever watched Fox news and think that all of society is just filled with bigots are tiring. There’s more inclusive books that don’t pretend to be inclusive by using trendy vernacular. I get the vibe that this is just a woman who hasn’t known peace herself, she is just constantly fighting and correcting and doesn’t know how to enjoy anything without finding a reason to dislike it.
  
  Please get varying view points rather than reading this stand alone nightmare. Donate your time to charities, donate to your local organizations to help further your community, just be kind. There’s books that encourage things like voting, community outreach, and doing more than writing a book about how angry you are about your place in the world.
  
  Do better.
• 
  Bookish Boshemian

  𝗔𝗻𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝗳𝗲𝘄 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗜 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗶𝘀 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗽𝗲𝗴𝗼𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿. 𝗦𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝗱 (𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲𝗹𝘆) 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗰𝘂𝗺𝗯 𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗶𝘀𝘁.
  
  
  I’ll lead with: folks dont get to decide to if they are an ally or not. It is up to the community you are trying to align yourself in allyship to decide. It’s decided by your actions because intent alone can still breed violence & perpetuate the very system you are thinking you are standing up against. If you truly aren’t performative - you’ll muster your way through this no matter how hard it is, because this book is trivial compared to 400+ plus of system oppression others have been forced to live under.
  
  
  This is the book to read after all the Antiracist book stacks have been read. Its also a hard read for anyone outside of the black community because this is the mirror that makes folks uncomfy - she explains how you are part of the issue no matter how you have convinced yourself that you aren’t. This is REAL soul work; as Rachel describes the first step to dissembling the system is for people to look inward, and for many to stop assuming white supremacy is a stain they aren’t connected to. She makes it very clear and explains how no person outside of the black community can say they aren’t.
  
  Do Better explains every crevice and root of supremacy AND how to truly combat them, refutes with facts all these off the wall rebuttals often made by folks who prefer deflecting, detaching or gaslighting; and validates the righteous rage of black
  people. She walks us through that rage, explain how it effects our health on all fronts (whether you think it does or not); breaks down the cycle of oppressed oppressor-ship and how to break it. She ALSO breaks down how mixed races individuals , white passing individuals, and POC also perpetuate this system.
  
  I LOVE the soul checks after each chapter, the journal prompts that walk you through the triggering parts, the ancestral meditations she integrated. Rachel doesn’t cut cards, but also acknowledges Antiracist work is hard work; and it’s internal before it could ever be external .
  
  This is also great for black readers interested in processing the trauma experienced due to systemic supremacy and whom wish to navigate white spaces better;
  especially without coddling the fragility of those around them (which she explains perpetuates the problem as well; she even breaks down that if you think you navigate them well you still subconsciously increase survival instinct in these spaces).
• 
  Shomeret

  Black author Rachel Ricketts believes that whites like me are too enmired in systematic white supremacy to steer clear of it. Maybe I can't, but I'm going to try my best in my review of Do Better by Rachel Ricketts.
  
  In Ricketts' definition of racial justice she says that it requires getting rid of white supremacy. So it seems to me that she considers racial justice an ideal that has never been achieved. I would say that when you consider the centuries of harm that white people have perpetrated, it would probably take centuries of positive acts to balance the scale.
  
  When I look back at 2021, I expect to consider Do Better to be the best book I've read this year. My criterion for non-fiction is how much I've learned from the book and I think I've learned more from this book than any other. It caused me to reflect a great deal about racism, and how I personally could have caused harm unknowingly.
  
  For my complete review see
  https://shomeretmasked.blogspot.com/2...
• 
  India

  4.5 stars. Phenomenal resource containing well laid out research, meaningful spiritual exercises, and powerful lived experiences. Ricketts’ writing is challenging and confrontational in the best way.
• 
  Larissa

  An absolute MUST, MUST, MUST read.
• 
  Scott Phillips

  We are being deluged with books on racism, how to do better, being prodded to remember it’s more than a hashtag, and coaxed to look within. Do Better is one of the latest entries and it’s a lot of work….as it should be.
  
  For transparency, I am a middle aged privileged Canadian born white man who grew up and continues to live in a highly mixed neighbourhood. Safe to say I am now the minority race in my area which is something I quite enjoy. I thrive off different cultures but I’m in the vast majority of people in my race/age group which is a factor in my reading books of this material as I hope to glean more ways to inform others of what I see and enjoy, pulling them into action. Ricketts has done a masterful job in doing so.
  
  I love books that present as guides and, even more so, ones that lay out projects or “to-do”’s that cause you to question if you are doing as much as you can. Again, Ricketts nails it. She is very upfront: you MUST do the exercises in order to be better. It’s a lot of work. It’s hard. It’s emotional. It’s time consuming. But so is being the person you hold privilege over. If you are unwilling to exert effort or acknowledge you need to, move on. If you are still willing to do it, and you are a meditative type, this book will be your new best friend. Each and every chapter challenges you to focus of affirmations and reflections, something I personally don’t do much of at all. Nothing in how it was presented here will make me change that, but it doesn’t take away from me pulling ideas and having mea culpa moments….I certainly did.
  
  From past discussions, readings, and real life experiences I am aware that nobody feels the pain of Black women, especially trans, queer, disabled, etc Black and Indigenous women. This is not talked about or acknowledged enough in society or the fight to do better. Ricketts talks about it here though….ad nauseum. Even if I wasn’t aware, I would be by the midway point but she keeps going back and back and back. Every. Chapter. It got to the point where I found myself audibly sighing when she did. I sighed a lot. More than needed.
  
  The glossary was another high note. She writes with a young persons vernacular, one which I picked up on but others of privilege may not. Her definitions are laid out well and could be nightstand material for some parents looking to help direct their kids.
  
  Is this the best book on how to fight white supremacy? No. It is not for the everyday reader, but it is stellar should you be into yoga mats and centering your soul & you are willing to let out a lot of emotions.
  
  Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for supplying a copy for review.
  
• 
  Brinda

  This book found me via an IG Live between the author and Austin Channing Brown that can be found on the @austinchanning IG page. The conversation was about Robin DiAngelo taking up space in the anti-racist speaker/workshop/author realms, but it’s so much more. Please go find it.
  
  I have made many of the same points to my white friends, and hoped more would have the conversation with me after watching it themselves—but no dice. I know that not every DEI consultant agrees with the position Austin Channing Brown and Rachel Ricketts took on Robin DiAngelo, and I agree that both sides of the conversation are valuable.
  
  
  But now, for the book.
  
  It is extremely rare for me to read anything I’m not being tested on or not prepping for a book talk, and use a highlighter, a notebook, and page flags. Nearly never. But I know that the wisdom and genuine care for humanity that Rachel Rickets writes down for us is something I’m going to refer back to over and over again.
  
  Of all of the anti-racist books I’ve read, I’ve always found a need for someone to point out that inner work is required. That a white person has to be able to own up to past harms they’ve inflicted or instances where they could have acted and didn’t. I felt like anti-racism work couldn’t really begin until a white person looked deeply at the racism they were instilled with as a child, and what that looks like now when surrounded by other white adults. This book goes beyond all that I was missing from other anti-racism books. (And that’s not a criticism of other anti-racism authors. No one is obligated to write the thing I’m looking for. It’s just something I agreed that Robin DiAngelo should have picked up on before she became a best selling author. If you’re looking for a white anti-racism author that is more introspective of her own deficiencies, try Debby Irving’s Waking Up White—but only after you’ve read Black, Asian, Latinx, Hispanic, Trans, and Indigenous authors who have all written it down for you already.)
  
  This book, published at the near one-year mark of the global COVID pandemic is part reality check and part vibe check. It made me breathe easier and more consciously. It made me remember to drink water, and check on my friends to make sure they were drinking water too. It’s going to make me a better friend and accomplice for years to come.
• 
  Anna

  This is a poorly written and unedited mishmash of whining, finger pointing and overt hatred. Spiritually barren, with no hope for anyone.
• 
  Kimberly Turner

  I would actually give this book 3.5/5.0.
  
  This book on anti-racism will be a tough read for white women because, frankly, it is filled with many hard truths that we need to hear. Ricketts patiently explains what is required for a lifelong practice in allyship while also describing her lived experience as a queer Black woman. She did not have to do any of these things. However, in doing so, she has opened her readers eyes to the struggles faced by those oppressed by the global white supremacist order.
  
  I really loved her call on readers to focus on inner work. She is right, we all have inner biases that we need to work on. I felt deeply connected to these calls for journalling out the needs and emotions of our inner child. However, I can see this being a sticking point for some readers that don’t identify as spiritual. Nonetheless, I also really appreciated her recognition of the needs to overhaul our political and economic orders to really achieve equity. Ricketts tells some hard truths in this book. But, as a consequence, readers are left with eyes opened and a way forward at the end.
• 
  Amy Rhoda Brown

  I actually don't really know how to review this book.
  For the first few chapters, I flagged lots of pages and quotes to refer to later, but as I went through the book I found less and less to make note of. There is plenty in this book that's valuable, but it didn't really land for me for various reasons.
  
  I'm going to punt, and direct you to
  a review by another Goodreads member, which is far better than the review I would have written.
  
  I'm looking forward to reading
  So You Want to Talk About Race, another book in the same area. And I have been following the work of
  Michelle Nicole on Instagram. So there are plenty of other avenues to explore if this book doesn't hit.
• 
  Maggies Daisy

  This took me quite a while to finish. Thought when I picked it out that it would help do some healing but instead it was filled with page after page of anger directed at others especially white woman... There were many instances where the author contradicted their self. I started to become just as angry but not in a good way. Unity with peace can be achieved but not by ranting and blaming the majority for things that are beyond their control. I now understand why other people are against CRT.
  
• 
  Kaitlin

  DNF
  a great work for those who are white and new to white supremacy. I put mine in a little free library in a rich white neighborhood.
• 
  Lindsay O’Connor

  “When we are unable to face our shadow self or tolerate the full spectrum of our humxn emotions or the emotions of others, then we are ill-equipped to authentically engage in anti-racism.”
  
  “White supremacy is one of the greatest forms of collective social trauma in the world. ...our healing will be the revolution. Racism is an inside job. Because we cannot heal what we refuse to reveal.”
  
  “The practice of spirituality then becomes the practice of learning how to tap into our interconnectedness, face our inner shadows, and transform our pain into personal and collective change.”
  
  This book is challenging, insightful, and important! I read it for book club and was grateful to discuss every few chapters because it is a lot to unpack. The glossary alone is worth the read. It is unlike any antiracism book I have read before in how it focuses on the inner work needed to dismantle white supremacy. Each chapter ends with a powerful exercise (such as a journal prompt or guided meditation).
  
  The author explains important concepts such as internalized oppression, spiritual bypassing, and intersectional spirituality. I also appreciated the practical help in chapters such as “Acting in Allyship,” and “How to Better Support Black Women+.” This is one to return to again and again, both to read and to revisit the exercises.
  
  The writing is straightforward and challenging (Ricketts says the book is “primarily to, though not for, white women+”), but it still manages to be hopeful and encouraging to those on the journey of dismantling white supremacy. I highly recommend this one, especially for those who have done some prior reading on antiracism.
• 
  Marie

  White supremacy is the common, status quo, globally held, and often unconscious belief that white people, and thus white ideas, beliefs, actions, and ideologies, are in some way superior to non-whites. It is the conscious and unconscious collective, institutional, and systematic belief that white people are and deserve better than other races, are rightfully entitled to hold the global majority of power, privilege, and all the benefits that go with them, and earned such power and privilege in a manner that did not take advantage, abuse, and oppress Black, Indigenous, and People of Color in order to do so.
  
  Indifference and minimisation( not all white people) are the beginnings of White Supremacy.
  
  There are white people and people who happen to be white. People who happen to be white appreciate their privilege yet actively work to shift the power imbalance and create opportunities for the oppressed.
• 
  Charisse Morrell

  I expected this book to be an uncomfortable but necessary read, as a white woman. And it was, but not in the ways I expected necessarily. It's incredibly thought provoking, eye opening, and soul changing. Rachel is unapologetic in her calling out of racism and oppression, but still manages to provide meaningful, tangible calls to action and spiritually developmental exercises. I didn't think reading a book like this would give me a spiritual experience, but it absolutely did. Multiple times, actually. Rachel is a beautiful, powerful, and incredibly important voice in this movement. The emotional labor that went into this book on her behalf is palpable and I honestly feel honored that I get to benefit from it.
  
  If you're looking for a book to tell you how to fight systemic systems of oppression, this is it. If you're looking for a book to help you grow as an individual, this is it. If you're looking for a book to expand the way you view the world and give you a much-needed reality & ego check, this is it.
• 
  Grace

  I thought this was a really great book, and one written to (though not for) white women. The writing was quite engaging and easy to understand, though the author doesn't mince words or pull punches when it comes to letting white women in particular know the ways in which we need to step up and do better. Which is something I very much appreciated, but I do think that was helped along by the fact that I've done a lot of reading and work in this area beforehand. Each chapter is accompanied by journaling exercises at the end and I though the author did a great job mixing the prose with prompts to bring it from theory to practice. Definitely a book I'd recommend for anybody, but particularly for white women.
• 
  ℓ◎♥℮ т☺ яεαḓ

  I acquired this book as a Goodreads Giveaway recipient. And I feel so fortunate!
  
  First off, this book is worth 5 stars for the glossary alone. Words that I thought I understood? Not as well as I thought.
  
  This is a tough book that made me uncomfortable, but I was grateful for the discomfort. I appreciated that the author interspersed personal experience. I will read it again many times because not only is further and deeper understanding possible, but also necessary. Racism must be confronted, inside of each one of us and out in the world.
  
  This book is necessary. I highly recommend this book to everyone, especially if you're willing to do the real spiritual work required.
• 
  Lauren

  Great book and an informative reminder of why anti-racism is so important. Would recommend to those looking to refresh their anti-racism work and realign to the cause. As the author states, “this book is written TO white women+ and FOR BIPOC women+.”
  
  I also loved the author’s use of the term “soul-care” and its differentiation from self-care. This was a new concept for me and appreciate the differentiation.
• 
  Stacey

  I’ve read what I feel like is a fair amount of books on white supremacy and race and goodness this one laid it all out and definitely put me in my place. So much information to process; I’ll need to come back and reference a lot of the info again. She swears A LOT and it was a bit much for me as someone who doesn’t swear and isn’t often around people who swear.
• 
  Paige

  To be clear to start: I am white, cis, straight, woman. I admit the intro of this book made me a little skeptical, mainly because I was not expecting to see words like "humxn" and "folx," and while the glossary was useful I wish it had included some history or theory behind why those terms are inherently more inclusive. But the fact is you get used to it quickly (and like Ricketts says, Google is free, and I am more than capable of looking up more information myself!) and as soon as I started the first chapter my doubts were all gone. Ricketts is very open and shares some of her most personal experiences, some of which I know had to be very painful to write about, to provide a very clear perspective on things I am never going to personally experience because of my own privileges. She supports everything with research and statistics and other experts too, so it's more than her personal experiences. It's never fun to examine your own flaws and think about times you have hurt other people by perpetuating white supremacy, but the book is useful in how it helps you get over yourself and actually improve instead of feeling guilty and calling it a day. I had some small issues - saying heterosexual people all have some form of transphobia ignores that trans people can be heterosexual, and I don't think saying "women+" instead of "womxn" addresses any of the criticisms on how "womxn" is not inclusive. (It still seems like it puts nonbinary/femme people in a "woman lite" category, and trans women are women, not some women-alt.) Then there was stuff that was just Not For Me, not any of the actual substance or prompts but I mean the suggested meditation and breathwork exercises, and I'm also not a very spiritual person. I have never been able to sit still ever, and asking me to meditate is like asking me to fly. But the actual thought exercises and prompts are useful and I benefited from them all the same, breathwork or not! I really loved the "wealth and hellness" chapter and the section on apologies, where Ricketts states "an apology without change is manipulation," which is just such a perfect and succinct analysis. At some point it seems like it became an expectation that someone must accept an apology and give forgiveness, and it was really refreshing to read pushback on that concept, and point out that that is not the point of apologizing about harm you have inflicted anyway. This book provided me with a lot of ways to be a better and more supportive friend and a better and more supportive coworker, and I saved a lot of notes to return to and practice again and again.