Over the weekend, white nationalist demonstrations in Charlottesville, VA were a stark reminder that racist ideology is still alive in America. And for white people who don't fully understand what "white nationalism" means or want to be a better ally to people of color, it's important to educate yourself.
While it may seem daunting to read up on a complicated issue, you shouldn't rely on your friends of color to educate you on racism — it's not their job to take on that additional labor.
There are plenty of tools out there to walk you through America's racist past (and present) and explain what led up to this weekend's events in Charlottesville. To start, check out these articles, books, podcasts, and films.
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Articles:
"A New Generation of White Supremacists Emerges in Charlottesville," ProPublica
"Charlottesville and the Effort to Downplay Racism in America," The New Yorker
"Inside the Lives of White Supremacist Women," Marie Claire
"His Kampf," The Atlantic
"12 Ways to Be a White Ally to Black People," The Root
"So You Call Yourself an Ally: 10 Things All ‘Allies’ Need to Know," Everyday
Feminism
Books:
The History of White People, by Nell Irvin Painter
Making Whiteness: The Culture of Segregation in the South, 1890-1940, by Grace
Elizabeth Hale
The Strange Career of Jim Crow, by Comer Vann Woodward
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, by Michelle
Alexander
The Condemnation of Blackness, by Khalil Gibran Muhammad
Between the World and Me, by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America,
by Ibram X. Kendi
Podcasts:
It's Been A Minute, "Charlottesville and White People," NPR
Race Matters, NPR
The Daily, "A Turning Point in Charlottesville," The New York Times
Videos:
13th, on Netflix
This is by no means a complete or all-encompassing list, but it's a good place to start if you want to educate yourself on racism and white nationalism in America.