My reading journey on race, racism and a step towards positive change

It has been a year since I wrote my first blog in August of 2019. I didn’t think or for that matter no one would have thought the world will be so much different in a year’s time. One thing that has stayed constant for me is my reading habit. The year started with two books on my reading list. But the list slowly grew through recommendations from friends, family and colleagues.

With the pandemic I have been lucky to work from home. Kids school has gone online. When the year started I was a bit worried that reading was losing steam but with no commute time and no after school activities for the kids, suddenly I had lot more reading time. Also, the events of past few months made me want to read more and understand the race issue.

It turns out that majority of the books I read this year have been autobiographical. I have always been amazed that how much authors are willing to relive their personal experiences by sharing them in writing. The year started off with Michele Obama’s Becoming and the second was Barack Obama’s Dreams from my father. Following the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, race became a hot topic of discussion in our house as my boys started talking about race issues and made me want to understand more. If you pick any of the books they talk about racism around a different time period and it is clear while a lot of progress has been made it is still a major issue that needs to stay at the forefront be it peaceful protests, discussions and meaningful changes in workplaces and change of laws.

I read following books that I would classify as autobiographical:

• Becoming by Michele Obama
• Dreams of My Father by Barack Obama
• When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Memoir by Patrisse Khan-Cullors and Asha Bandele
• So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo

As the Black Lives Matter movement was picking steam I wanted to learn more about the beginnings of the movement. Patrisse Khan-Cullors, co-founder of the Black Lives Matter takes us through a journey of her childhood and all challenges of growing up as a black kid in poor neighborhood. The book touches upon how the movement was finally borne. It is a must read if you want to understand why the race issue is critical to talk about and address.

In times of uncertainty a bit of philosophy can do a world of good. I highly recommend two book by Yuval Noah Harari, to anyone who wants to get a fresh perspective on human evolution and where we are going as a species. The author tackles the issue of racism from historical perspective. While that may not be the main theme of the books but it is equally important to understand the race issue. The two books are:

• Homo Sapiens: A Brief History of Mankind
• Homo Deus: : A Brief History of Tomorrow

The books have given me a broader perspective on the issue of underrepresented communities. Learning is one part but the other part is helping make a positive change. To that end I have started volunteering with code2college, a non-profit helping underrepresented groups succeed in the STEM field. I have also committed one year to a community outreach committee at my workplace, the goal is to identify and promote non-profit organization representing underrepresented committees. I urge my readers to look at ways they can help make a positive change. Small and sustained efforts by diverse groups will help bring a positive change and this world a happier place.