Evanston Township High School will host “How to Be an Antiracist” with Ibram X. Kendi, Ph.D. on Friday, September 6, beginning at 7:00 p.m., in the school auditorium, located at 1600 Dodge Ave. The event is free and open to the public, suitable for ages 12 and up. Dr. Kendi will be interviewed by Marcus Campbell, Ed.D., ETHS Assistant Superintendent and Principal.
In Dr. Kendi’s 2018 book Stamped From the Beginning, for which he won the National Book Award for Non-fiction (and was the youngest writer to ever do so), he explored how racist ideas were created, spread, and deeply rooted in American society; in his brand-new book, How to Be an Antiracist, he explores what we can do about this racism.
Dr. 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. He begins by helping us rethink our most deeply held, if implicit, beliefs and our most intimate personal relationships (including beliefs about race, IQ, and interracial social relations) and reexamines the policies and larger social arrangements we support. How to Be an Antiracist promises to be an essential book for anyone who wants to go beyond an awareness of racism and move toward the formation of a truly just and equitable society.
Dr. Kendi’s concept of antiracism reenergizes and reshapes the conversation about racial justice in America — but even more fundamentally, he points us toward liberating new ways of thinking about ourselves and each other. Instead of working with the policies and system we have in place, Kendi asks us to think about what an antiracist society might look like, and how we can take an active role in building it.
Dr. Kendi is one of America’s foremost historians and leading antiracist voices. He is a New York Times bestselling author and the Founding Director of The Antiracist Research and Policy Center at American University. A professor of history and international relations, he is an ideas columnist at The Atlantic. He is also the author of The Black Campus Movement, which won the W.E.B. Du Bois Book Prize.
He has also published op-eds in numerous periodicals, including The New York Times, The Guardian, Washington Post, London Review, Time, Salon, Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, Paris Review, Black Perspectives, and The Chronicle of Higher Education.
Guests should plan to arrive at least 15 minutes before the start of the event to find parking and seats. Accessible seating is available in the auditorium. Parking is available in the lot across from the main entrance, off of Dodge Avenue, or in the lots behind the high school. Parking is also available along Dodge Avenue according to posted City of Evanston signs.
The September 6 presentation is sponsored by Family Action Network (FAN), in partnership with Evanston Township High School. For more information about FAN events and sponsors for the 2019-20 presentations, visit www.familyactionnetwork.net.