The recent tragedies and subsequent protests are indicative of a long, systemic history of racism. There are many, many things we need to do on a nationwide scale to repair our inherent brokenness, but we can each do work individually.

We must work—actively work—to become anti-racist. One of the most important ways to do this, for my fellow white brothers and sisters, is to listen, really listen, to our brothers and sisters of color.

Lots of us here are bookworms. Let’s make a commitment to read the words from these men and women. It’s the least we can do (and should be the least we do).

I love this illustration from Jane Mount—below are links to the books on display:

(Note: There’s a few books in this list written by white writers. While I’m sure they’re excellent, let’s prioritize primarily hearing from BIPOC.)

I also recommend following Marla’s account White Girl Learning, where she posts about what she’s learning as she reads from BIPOC:

And this summer, we’ll be reading Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichi together in Books & Crannies, if you’d like to join us:

We must, must, must listen. And then take these words to heart, friends:

(Links to books are from Bookshop, which both supports independent bookstores and my own work here. For no extra cost on your end, we’ll both receive a small commission instead of that behemoth online conglomerate we know all too well—thanks for supporting work that matters to you.)