Summary

In the introduction, Kendi recalls competing in an oratorical contest in high school. During his speech, Kendi called out other Black youths for being unambitious, and for having a higher incidence level of teen pregnancy. In retrospect, he realizes this speech was a product of internalized racism. He goes on to explain his concept of antiracism. If to be racist is to believe that some people are inferior because of their race, to be “not racist” (9) is simply a neutral state of “passivity” (10), whereas to be antiracist is to believe that all people are equal, and to be actively working to dismantle institutional/pervasive racism.

In Chapter 1, “Definitions” (13), Kendi recalls the way his parents met in 1970, how they both attended a Christian festival at the University of Illinois, traveling separately from New York to listen to the Black activist Tom Skinner speak...