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Getting Real About Race
Third Edition
Edited by:
November 2021 | 528 pages | SAGE Publications, Inc
Getting Real About Race is an edited collection of short essays that address the most common stereotypes and misconceptions about race held by students, and by many in the United States, in general.
Key Features
- Each essay concludes with suggested sources including videos, websites, books, and/or articles that instructors can choose to assign as additional readings on a topic.
- Essays also end with questions for discussion that allow students to move from the “what” (knowledge) to the “so what” (implications) of race in their own lives.
- In this spirit, the authors include suggested “Reaching Across the Color Line” activities at the end of each essay, allowing students to apply their new knowledge on the topic in a unique or creative way.
- Current topics students want to discuss are brought up through the text, making it easier for the instructor to deal with these topics in an open classroom environment.
I. LAYING THE FOUNDATION
Cherise A. Harris and Stephanie M. McClure
Essay 1: “Talking About Race Just Makes Everybody Uncomfortable”: Why We Need to Discuss Race in the United States
Beverly D. Tatum
Essay 2: “What is Racism Anyway?”: Understanding the Basics of Racism and Prejudice
Daniel Buffington
Essay 3: “Blacks Are Naturally Good Athletes”: The Myth of a Biological Basis for Race
Bradley Koch
Essay 4: “Native American/Indian, Asian/Oriental, Latino/Hispanic . . . Who Cares?”: Language and the Power of Self-Definition
Moustafa Bayoumi
Essay 5: “But Islam Is a Religion, Not a Race”: The Racialization of Religion
Nikka Khanna
Essay 6: “Doesn’t Anti-blackness Only Happen in the U.S.?”: Confronting the Reality of Global Anti-blackness
II. DEBUNKING INDIVIDUAL ATTITUDES
Ted Thornhill
Essay 7: “I Just Want to Get Back to Normal”!: Silencing the Myth of a Color-Blind Society
Paula Ioanide
Essay 8: “Black People Would Make It If They Just Worked Hard”: The Myth of Meritocracy
Rashawn Ray and Jasmón Bailey
Essay 9: “If Only They Hadn’t. . . [Been Black]”: Race, Implicit Bias, and Stereotype Maintenance
Jennifer Domino Rudolph
Essay 10: “My Family Had to Learn English When They Came, so Why Is Everything in Spanish for Them?”: Race and the Spanish Language in the United States
Min Zhou and Victoria Tran
Essay 11: “Asians Are Doing Great, so That Proves Race Really Doesn’t Matter Anymore”: The Model Minority Myth and the Sociological Reality
Dana M. Williams
Essay 12: “But It’s Honoring! It’s Tradition”: The Persistence of Racialized Indian Mascots in Sports
Angela Stroud
Essay 13: “Good Guys with Guns Protect Us”: The Intersection of Race and Gender in Gun Ownership
III. INSTITUTIONS, POLICIES, AND LEGACIES OF OPPRESSION
Jonathan Grant
Essay 14: “Black People Have Money Now, So Why Are They Still Complaining?”: Exploring the Fragility of the Black Middle Class
Margaret A. Hagerman
Essay 15: “But Parents Just Want What Is Best for Their Kids”: Sociological Realities of Privileged Parenting and Opportunity
Hersheda Patel, Emily Meanwell, and Stephanie M. McClure
Essay 16: “Well, That Culture Really Values Education”: Culture Versus Structure in Educational Attainment
Stephanie M. McClure and Kaílah Jeffries
Essay 17: “They Don’t Want To Be Integrated; They Even Have Their Own Organizations”: History, Institutional Context, and “Self-Segregation” on College Campuses
OiYan Poon, Nikki Kahealani Chun, Joanne Song Engler, and Douglas H. Lee Politics
Essay 18: “I Had a Friend Who Had Worse Scores Than Me and They Got Into a Better College”: The Legal and Systemic Realities of Selective College Admissions Processes
Kara Cebulko
Essay 19: “If They Cared About Their Kids They Wouldn’t Have Broken the Law”
Sara Buck Doude and Vanessa Rodriguez
Essay 20: “If Black People Aren’t Criminals, Then Why Are So Many of Them in Prison?”: Confronting Racial Biases in Perceptions of Crime and Criminals
Angela Gonzales and Judy Kertész
Essay 21: “My Mom Says We Are Half Cherokee”: Indigenous Identity, Being, and Belonging
Dawne M. Mouzon and Breanna D. Brock
Essay 22: “If Only They Would Make Better Choices . . . ”: Confronting Myths About Ethnoracial Health Disparities
Wendy Leo Moore
Essay 23: “Now All the Good Jobs Go to Them!”: Affirmative Action in the Labor Market
James L. Thomas
Essay 24: “But This Is Erasing History!”: The Myths and Realities of Memorializing the Confederacy
Hersheda Patel and James Bridgeforth
Essay 25: “Sure, Black Lives Matter But Why Do They Have to Loot and Riot?!”: Debunking Myths of Black Protest
IV. RACE IN EVERYDAY INTERACTIONS
Geoff Harkness
Essay 26: “Why Do They Get to Use the N-Word but I Can’t?”: Privilege, Power, and the Politics of Language
Brittney Dennis
Essay 27: “It’s Appreciation, Not Appropriation! I Don’t Know Why You’re Offended!”: Understanding Cultural Appropriation
Cherise A. Harris
Essay 28: “I’m Not Racist; Some of My Best Friends and Family Are . . . ”: From “Friends and Family” to Allies, Accomplices, and Co-Conspirators