Book Review: White Like Me by Tim Wise

This little book is written by a well-known anti-racism activist and speaker. Tim Wise reflects on his own experiences as a white male to make a case for the existence of white privilege and to suggest that white folks have an interest in doing something about it. The book isn't academic in the least and I, for one, feel that it would be a more convincing text for those who aren't already inclined to agree with Wise's perspective if he referenced some of the data on prejudice and discrimination to shore up his anecdotes (yes, yes, I know statistics don't move people but STILL...). It's not that the episodes he recounts aren't compelling, it's just that when you fail to supersede discussion of personal experiences you cannot argue that an individual's experiences, for example, of reverse discrimination do not have the same impact that white privilege does.

Although I am not sure that I would assign the book to undergrads, I am definitely going to snark some of Wise's material when I teach Race & Ethnicity. Most helpful to me personally was Wise's discussion of how to deal with "white bonding" - when folks tell racist jokes, etc., to other white people- and his argument that it is counterproductive for white folks to be motivated in their anti-racist activism by a desire to help people of color. Instead, they should be motivated by self interest. We must all confront racism, he argues, because of what it does to our psyches and our communities no matter how white.

Anyway, by all means read it if you are into this kind of thing, if you aren't familiar with the white privilege stuff but think a new perspective might benefit you, or you are trying to figure out how to deal with those pesky students in your Race & Ethnicity lecture.