Author’s Photo from the African American Heritage and Education Center

As the nation deals with two epidemics, Covid 19 and racism, it is time for American writers to address the longest-lasting disease — racism.

Black authors have written on the subject for decades. They have described the cruelty they suffered and how they have dealt with it. They do not need encouragement to continue telling the story, reminding young Blacks about their history, and advocating for change.

Twelve Years a Slave

Now is the time for White authors to increase their efforts. Racism is not just a Black problem. Nor is it a Latino, Asian, Moslem, or Jewish problem.  It is a worldwide problem, but especially an American problem. Our racist society began with the importation of slaves in the 17^th century to work on plantations. These slaves brought farming technology with them. Technology that their slave owners were happy to employ. Slaves were bred like farm animals to produce children who would grow into strong adults to labor in the slave owner’s fields. This slavery was accompanied by lash and rape. Slavery became THE stain on America. Racism institutionalized and perpetuated that disgrace.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin

White writers should explore the roots of this inherited disease. They should produce books for all ages. We must recognize that racism is maintained and disseminated by ignorance. I believe this can be cured through education. Black authors should tell the story of how Blacks have suffered, how they have triumphed over adversity, and recommend courses of action. However, Blacks cannot solve the problem alone. Racism exists in the minds of White people and its eradication must include changing these minds.

Twenty-five Crucial Books About Racism In America

• A Dream Deferred by Langston Hughes
• The Hidden Wound by Wendell Berry
• We Real Cool by Gwendolyn Brooks
• The Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
• Why We Can’t Wait by Martin Luther King, Jr.
• The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
• The Mis-Education Of The Negro by Carter Godwin Woodson
• Barn Burning by William Faulkner
• I, Too, Sing America by Langston Hughes
• Eyes On The Prize: America’s Civil Rights Years
• Blood Done Sign My Name by Timothy B. Tyson
• Go Tell It On The Mountain by James Baldwin
• Between The World And Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
• Bound For the Promised Land by Kate Clifford Larson
• The Autobiography of Malcolm X as told to Alex Haley
• Death of Innocenceby Mamie Till-Mobley
• Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption by Bryan Stevenson
• The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace by Jeff Hobbs
• Ain’t I A Woman: Black Women and Feminismby Bell Hooks
• Citizen: An American Lyricby Claudia Rankine
• The Bluest Eyeby Toni Morrison
• The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration In The Age of Colorblindnessby Michelle Alexander
• Their Eyes Were Watching Godby Zora Neale Hurston
• Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together In The Cafeteriaby Beverly Daniel Tatum
• Free At Last: A History Of The Civil Rights Movement And Those Who Died In The Struggleby Sara Bullard

From 25 Crucial Books About Racism In America

Books about American slavery

• Roots: The Saga of an American Family by Alex Haley
• Kindred by Octavia E. Butler
• Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
• Beloved by Toni Morrison
• The Color Purple by Alice Walker
• Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Ann Jacobs
• The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom
• Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass
• Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup
• Up from Slavery by Booker T. Washington
• Queen by Alex Haley
• The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman by Ernest J. Gaines
• The Confessions of Nat Turner by William Styron
• The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead 
  When I Was a Slave: Memoirs from the Slave Narrative Collection by Norman R. Yetman (Editor)

From Books About American Slavery