Three Box Book Club: How To Be An Antiracist Top Takeaways
Three Box’s commitment to true diversity, equity and inclusion comes with lifelong education paired with consistent action. Recently, the Three Box Book Club read “How To Be An Antiracist” by Ibram X. Kendi to expand our perspectives, embolden honest team conversations and motivate both individual and collective change.
Read on for the team’s top takeaways!
AMANDA HILL, CEO
"How to Be an Antiracist" weaves hard data and facts with Ibram Kendi's personal experiences with horrific racism that permeates our country and world. What struck me most was his bold assertion that racism affects all of us. No one can be truly free until we aggressively identify and eliminate the source of racist ideas and policies. As a person with privilege, it is my responsibility to use whatever influence I have to actively challenge racism in myself, my community, my country and my world.
BLAKE LEWIS, FOUNDING PRINCIPAL
I started reading Ibram X. Kendi's book with the notion his work would center on the quarter-millennium of over-promising and under-delivering on the blueprint of our nation's founders. Instead, his book exploded my perspectives! While the events of the past several months have delivered a clear vision of the what, Kendi provided a deep dive on the why behind where we are, balancing his own story, that of Black and other people of color and of white people. While our overall society undoubtedly will feel unsettled for some time as a new mandate to personally and organizationally commit to diversity, equity and inclusion moves across the land, Kendi's book helps empower the change essential to delivering "In liberty and justice for all."
CHRISTI MATTHYS, DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS
This book opened my eyes to all the different facets of racism and the wide impact it has on our world. I really appreciated Kendi sharing his own personal journey with racism and his acknowledgement that it’s a lifelong process for all of us, including even the most well-informed antiracist leaders. Even when it is hard, “It is best to challenge ourselves by dragging ourselves before people who intimidate us with their brilliance and constructive criticism.” We aren’t always going to get it right, but we should be constantly pursuing and advocating for antiracist policies that will benefit society as a whole, both today and well into the future.
ASHTON BROWN, ACCOUNT LEAD
If these last few months have taught us anything, it's that we can no longer turn a blind eye to the systemic inequalities within our society and the implicit biases within ourselves. In "How To Be An Antiracist," Ibram X. Kendi offers an unflinching look at the racial injustices that are rampant in this country, interweaving historical context with his own personal experiences as a Black man in America to paint a picture that's deeply unsettling to look at. But, if Kendi tells us anything, it's that we mustn't look away if we hope to drive lasting change. Instead, we must face racism head-on and fight against it with all our might - dismantling everything we thought we knew and rebuilding a new foundation to stand upon. For me, Kendi's book is the first of many, many bricks.
TEDDI CLIETT, SENIOR ASSOCIATE
My yellow highlighter almost ran dry while reading “How To Be An Antiracist.” Kendi presents comprehensive historical data in digestible chapters that challenged me to break down the systems, ideas and beliefs that contribute to both society's deeply rooted racism and my own. The most impactful takeaway, for me, was the idea that being an antiracist is more than just sharing social media graphics or signing a petition. Every thought, conversation and action is either racist or antiracist, and I must make the lifelong commitment to continuously challenge and change my own way of being in search of creating a more equitable society.
To learn more about Three Box’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, read our agency’s full statement here, or Three Box CEO Amanda Hill’s recent blog post here.