Anti-Racism Resources
The global movement to eradicate systemic and institutional racism calls us all to reflect, to learn, to imagine, and to build a better future at the University of Michigan and beyond through education and action.
This list of resources is for those seeking to increase their knowledge, awareness, and understanding of DEI and anti-racism frameworks. With a focus on recent and relevant publications, this list is not meant to be exhaustive. If you have resources you would like us to add to this list, please email the Rackham Communications Team.
“Rackham is committed to creating an environment in which all students feel safe, welcome, and supported. We know there is much work to be done, that we are constantly learning, and that we do not always succeed in meeting our goals and expectations. We know, however, that we cannot pursue this work to support our students without thinking about how events outside Rackham harm members of our community disproportionately due to their race and ethnicity. As we respond to this difficult reality, we support advocacy, action, allyship, and leadership in the Rackham community.”
—Dean Mike Solomon
Resources
- U-M Campus DEI Resources
- Understanding Implicit Bias
- 20+ Allyship Actions for Asians to Show Up for the Black Community Right Now
- 4 Ways to Apply Your Anti-Racism Efforts to Virtual Environments
- How to Turn White Privilege into Antiracist Allyship
- Ta-Nehisi Coates on Police Brutality
- Black and Asian-American Feminist Solidarities: A Reading List
- How to Safely and Ethically Film Police Misconduct
- Confronting Prejudice: How to Protect Yourself and Help Others
- Public Health Resources for Understanding Environmental Racism
Books and Reading Lists
Reading Lists
- U-M Library Anti-Racist Reading List
- U-M Library Resource Guide: anti-racism within the context of Southeast Michigan
- An Antiracist Reading List by Ibram X. Kendi (New York Times)
Books: Fiction
- The Water Dancer A Novel Ta-Nehisi Coates
- They Called Me 299-359: Poetry by the Incarcerated Youth of Free Minds by Free Minds Writers
- How Long ’til Black Future Month? Stories by NK Jemisin
- All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
- The Nickel Boys A Novel Colson Whitehead
Books: Non-Fiction
- The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
by Michelle Alexander - Raising Our Hands by Jenna Arnold
- Notes of a Native Son by James Baldwin
- The Next American Revolution: Sustainable Activism for the Twenty-First Century
by Grace Lee Boggs - Emergent Strategy by adrienne mariee brown
- Unapologetic A Black, Queer, and Feminist Mandate for Radical Movements by Charlene Carruthers
- Asian American Histories of the United States by Catherine Ceniza Choy
- Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
- Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower by Dr. Brittney Cooper
- When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir by Patrisse Cullors, asha bandele
- Angela Davis: An Autobiography by Angela Y Davis
- Black Lives Matter at School: An Uprising for Educational Justice by Jesse Hagopian, Denisha Jones, Opal Tometi
- The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story by Nikole Hannah-Jones, The New York Times Magazine, and Caitlin Roper
- Troublemaker for Justice The Story of Bayard Rustin, the Man Behind the March on Washington by Jacqueline Houtman, Walter Naegle, Michael G Long
- Do This ‘Til We Free Us Abolitionist Organizing and Transforming Justice Abolitionist Papers #1 by Mariame Kaba, Tamara K Nopper, Naomi Murakawa
- When Affirmative Action Was White: An Untold History of Racial Inequality in Twentieth-Century America by Ira Katznelson
- Hood Feminism by Mikki Kendall
- Amazons, Abolitionists, and Activists A Graphic History of Women’s Fight for Their Rights by Mikki Kendall, A D’Amico
- Stamped from the Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi – Note: There is a YA “remix” of this book, offering explorations of the same themes, formatted for middle and high school readers (and adults who appreciate a more conversational style): Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
- How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X Kendi
- Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon
- Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde
- They Can’t Kill Us All: Ferguson, Baltimore, and a New Era in America’s Racial Justice Movement by Wesley Lowery
- My Grandmother’s Hands Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies by Resmaa Menakem
- Redefining Realness by Janet Mock
- This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color by Cherríe Moraga
- So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
- An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States by Roxanne Ortiz – Note: There is a YA version of this book, offering explorations of the same themes, formatted for middle and high school readers: An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States for Young People
- The Color of Law A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America by Richard Rothstein
- Healing Racial Trauma: The Road to Resilience by Sheila Wise Rowe
- Me and White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad – Note: There is a YA version of this book, offering explorations on the same themes for middle and high school readers: Me and White Supremacy: Young Readers’ Edition.
- How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America by Clint Smith
- Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
- The Kaepernick Effect Taking a Knee, Changing the World by Dave Zirin
Organizations
- U-M Prison Creative Arts Project
- U-M Carceral State Project
- U-M Students of Color of Rackham
- Advancement Project
- The American Civil Liberties Union – ACLU Michigan
- BAMN – Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, Integration, and Immigrant Rights and Fight for Equality By Any Means Necessary
- Black Lives Matter Detroit Chapter
- The Black Youth Project
- Color of Change
- Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice – Ann Arbor
- The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) – Ann Arbor Chapter – NAACP
- The National Coalition of Black Civic Participation
- Native Justice Coalition
- NEW Center – Ann Arbor: Centering Justice and Champions for Change
- Notimeforsilence.org
- Mutual Aid Network of Ypsilanti
- Survivors Speak – Ann Arbor/Ypsi
Social Media
- Antiracism Center on Twitter
- Audre Lorde Project on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- Black Women’s Blueprint on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- Color Of Change on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- Colorlines on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- The Conscious Kid on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- Families Belong Together on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- Justice League NYC on Twitter, and Instagram
- Gathering For Justice on Twitter, Instagram
- The Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- MPowerChange on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- Muslim Girl on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- NAACP on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- National Domestic Workers Alliance on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- RAICES on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- SisterSong on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- United We Dream on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
Films and Television Series
- 13th, directed by Ava DuVernay, available on Netflix with a subscription
- American Segregation, Mapped at Day and Night produced by Vox, available for free on YouTube
- American Son, directed by Kenny Leon, available on Netflix with a subscription
- Black Power Mixtape: 1967-1975, directed by Göran Olsson, available to online from multiple sources, including the U-M Library
- Blindspotting, directed by Carlos López Estrada, available on Hulu with a subscription, or to rent online from multiple sources
- Clemency, directed by Chinonye Chukwu, available on Hulu with a subscription, or to rent online from multiple sources
- Dear White People, created by Justin Simien, available on Netflix with a subscription, or to rent online from multiple sources
- Fruitvale Station, directed by Ryan Coogler, available to online from multiple sources, including the U-M Library
- I Am Not Your Negro, written by James Baldwin, directed by Raoul Peck, available on Kanopy through the University of Michigan, or to rent online from multiple sources
- If Beale Street Could Talk, directed by Barry Jenkins, available on Hulu with a subscription, or to rent online from multiple sources
- Just Mercy, directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, available for free on YouTube, on Amazon Prime Video with a subscription, and to rent online from multiple sources
- King In The Wilderness, directed by Peter Kunhardt, available on Hulu or HBO Max with subscription, or to rent online from multiple sources
- See You Yesterday, directed by Stefon Bristol, available on Netflix with a subscription
- Selma, directed by Ava DuVernay, available for free on YouTube, on Amazon Prime Video with subscription, or to rent online from multiple sources
- The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution, available for free on PBS, or to rent online from multiple sources
- The Hate U Give, directed by George Tillman Jr., available for free on YouTube, on Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, or HBO Max with a subscription
- The Problem with America’s College Entrance Exam, produced by Vox, available for free on YouTube
- Explained: Racial Wealth Gap, produced by Vox Media Studios, Vox, and Netflix, available for free on YouTube
- When They See Us, directed by Ava DuVernay, available on Netflix with a subscription
Podcasts
- 1619 from the New York Times
- About Race hosted by Anna Holmes, Baratunde Thurston, Raquel Cepeda, and Tanner Colby
- Code Switch from National Public Radio
- Intersectionality Matters! hosted by Kimberlé Crenshaw
- Momentum: A Race Forward Podcast co-hosted by Chevon and Hiba
- Pod for the Cause from The Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights
- Pod Save the People hosted by DeRay Mckesson
- Seeing White hosted by Chenjerai Kumanyika
- The Breakdown with Dr. Earl: A Mental Health Podcast hosted by Dr. Earl Turner
- The Homecoming Podcast with Dr. Thema hosted by Dr. Thema Bryant-Davis
- White Lies from National Public Radio, hosted by Chip Brantley and Andrew Beck Grace