As we begin our work together to dismantle White Supremacy, we invite and encourage the Chalice Congregation to read two informative and challenging books.

We will begin with White Fragility, written by a white professor Robin DiAngelo for white people. Jonathan Capehart, in a recent article in the Washington post titled “Dear White People, Please Read White Fragility” wrote, “DiAngelo forces white people to see and understand how white supremacy permeates their lives and to recognize how they perpetuate it. More importantly, she shows them what they can do to change themselves and dismantle this pernicious system.” It is also recommended by the UUA.

We encourage you to watch this 6½ minute video by Robin DiAngelo: “Why ‘I’m not racist’ is only half the story.”

White Fragility does have its critics and we will include their criticisms when we discuss the book.  We believe understanding them will enhance our learning experience.

We will follow that with How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi. “The only way to undo racism is to consistently identify and describe it — and then dismantle it,” writes professor Kendi. In his book he identifies 17 areas where racism shows up in our society. In each area he defines what a racist is and what an antiracist is. And he contends there is no middle ground. It was named one of the best books of the year by the New York Times, NPR, Times Magazine, and the Washington Posts

Debi Streett-Idell has 20 copies of each book to loan. Please contact her if you need a copy.

We will hold small group discussions on White Fragility beginning the week of August 31. We are still developing our study guide and will share more details within the next couples of weeks. To help us plan these discussions, please email us at chalicetransformation@gmail.com and let us know you are going to join the congregational read.

We look forward to this learning experience that we will share together.

Your Transformation Team