“An unprecedented phenomenon.”
“Kendi is a highly charismatic historian and author who is emerging as one of the pre-eminent intellectuals on race.”
“Ibram Kendi’s work is vital in today’s sociopolitical climate. As a society, we need to start treating antiracism as action, not emotion—and Kendi is helping us do that.”
“[Kendi] has become one of the country’s most in-demand commentators on racism.”
“Ibram X. Kendi, the kind, dignified, preternaturally wise, and soft-spoken teacher, indefatigable in his quest to set you on the path toward true knowledge.”
“This is not a historian fearful of upsetting orthodoxies or questioning fixed reputations.”
“One of today’s most visible and sought-after public intellectuals.”
“I’ve never seen before one writer who has simultaneously had books that were bestselling in hardcover nonfiction, paperback nonfiction, young adult and board books.”
“His words are distilled, precise, authoritative.”
“I think of Ibram as someone who really gives us not only the big historical signposts, but the deep rationale for why we should call racism racism.”
“The greatest service Kendi [provides] is the ruthless prosecution of American ideas about race for their tensions, contradiction and unintended consequences.”
“The revolutionary spirit of Boston inspires Ibram X. Kendi.”
PRE-ORDER NEW BOOK
CHAIN OF IDEAS
The Origins of Our Authoritarian Age
The National Book Award-winning historian of Stamped from the Beginning charts how “great replacement theory” has moved from the margins to become the most dominant political theory of our time—and what we can do to safeguard democracy from this insidious threat.
Recall chants in Charlottesville, Virginia, but heard around the world: “You will not replace us!” Recall the string of mass shooters around the world—in Oslo, Christchurch, Buffalo, El Paso, and Pittsburgh—who claimed their crimes were a defense against “White genocide.” Recall business and media figures cultivating anxiety and furor over demographic change. These incidents only scratch the surface of this ascendant idea: Popular politicians in every region of the world have been expressing some version of great replacement theory, eroding democracy in the name of preventing demographic change.
What is great replacement theory? Variations on the theory have existed for centuries, but it was given this name by a French novelist in 2011 who believed Black and Brown immigrants were “invading” Europe, brought by shadowy elites to “replace” Europe’s White population. From there, politicians and theorists—whether in the US or Europe, Latin America or Oceania—repackaged the conspiracy as a story of “globalists” welcoming “migrant criminals” and diversity initiatives to take away the lives, livelihoods, and power of White people. Over time, great replacement theory has expanded the threat to include citizens, men, Jews, Christians, heterosexuals, and ethnic majorities on multiple continents.
In our fast-shifting political landscape, most people are unfamiliar with this theory’s origins and its spread, which isn’t a coincidence. In Chain of Ideas, Kendi uses exacting and clear prose to uncover the roots of great replacement theory and its various mutations around the world. It is an unsettling but indispensable global history of how great replacement theory brought humanity into this authoritarian age—and how we can free ourselves from it.
REVISED EDITION
Stamped From The Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America
In this deeply researched and fast-moving narrative, Kendi chronicles the entire story of anti-black racist ideas and their staggering power over the course of American history. He uses the life stories of five major American intellectuals to drive this history: Puritan minister Cotton Mather, Thomas Jefferson, abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison, W.E.B. Du Bois, and legendary activist Angela Davis. As Kendi shows, racist ideas did not arise from ignorance or hatred. They were created to justify and rationalize deeply entrenched discriminatory policies and the nation’s racial inequities.
“In this tour de force, Kendi explores the history of racist ideas—and their connection with racist practices—across American history. Racism is the enduring scar on the American consciousness. In this ambitious, magisterial book, Kendi reveals just how deep that scar cuts and why it endures, its barely subcutaneous pain still able to flare.” — Kirkus Reviews (Starred Review)
IN PAPERBACK
How to Be an Antiracist
In his memoir, Ibram X. Kendi weaves together an electrifying combination of ethics, history, law, and science--including the story of his own awakening to antiracism--bringing it all together in a cogent, accessible form. How to Be an Antiracist promises to become an essential book for anyone who wants to go beyond an awareness of racism to the next step of contributing to the formation of a truly just and equitable society.
“The most courageous book to date on the problem of race in the Western mind.” — The New York Times
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"BEING AN ANTIRACIST REQUIRES PERSISTENT SELF-AWARENESS, CONSTANT SELF-CRITICISM, AND REGULAR SELF-EXAMINATION."
- IBRAM X. KENDI
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