White Like Me: Reflections on Race from a Privileged Son

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White Like Me: Reflections on Race from a Privileged Son

4.15 of 5 stars 4.15 · rating details · 1,448 ratings · 185 reviews

Racial privilege shapes the lives of white Americans in every facet of life, from employment and education to housing and criminal justice. Using stories from his own life, Tim Wise shows that racism not only burdens people of color, but also benefits those who are "white like him" — whether or not they’re actively racist. Using stories instead of stale statistics, Wise we...more

Paperback, 176 pages

Published December 1st 2007 by Soft Skull Press (first published December 21st 2004)

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Feb 21, 2008 Rebecca rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: biography-memoir, ethnic-studies, read2008

OK, majorly important book here. Let's please take a moment and give Tim Wise the ridiculous amount of respect he deserves for advancing the dialogue on white privilege. I want to give this book 5 stars just for its existence. I settled on 4 because I don't know if it's a brilliant book, but it's without a doubt a provokingly honest book. I hope that readers will come away from it as I did, not guilt-stricken but with a greater sense of empathy and mindfulness.

Grounding an exploration of white p...more OK, majorly important book here. Let's please take a moment and give Tim Wise the ridiculous amount of respect he deserves for advancing the dialogue on white privilege. I want to give this book 5 stars just for its existence. I settled on 4 because I don't know if it's a brilliant book, but it's without a doubt a provokingly honest book. I hope that readers will come away from it as I did, not guilt-stricken but with a greater sense of empathy and mindfulness.

Grounding an exploration of white privilege in his personal narrative is obviously an intentional choice that raises the bar for all of us to examine race and privilege in our own lives. And an accessible rather than scholarly text? No problem here. That being said, I felt it sort of went back and forth between "treatise on white privilege" and "this is a memoir so excuse me for a moment while I work out my own family issues."

Relatedly, I feel like the title may as well have been "White liberal activist like me." He works with people from all walks of life in his speaking career, but this book seemed pretty narrowly aimed at the white crowd who honestly call themselves progressive on race and other social issues, were activists or sympathetic to activism while obtaining a liberal arts degree, and are eager to have their eyes opened to the insidious nature of white privilege. This is, of course, his own background, and we are the demographic most likely to pick up his book. But for a speaker gifted at connecting with all kinds of audiences, why not write with the same aim?

In fact one of the strongest aspects of the book is that for whatever reaction you might want to voice, he's had that conversation before. His most effective strategy is including anecdotes from his own experience where criticism pushed him to even deeper understanding. Like the man who had known Wise's grandfather, a Jew who gave back to the black community where he owned a liquor store, and asked him how it felt that "such a good man, was, for all intents and purposes, a drug dealer in the ghetto?" He works through that uncomfortable realization to conclude that all of us are neither good nor bad, but complicated, and that the best of intentions cannot shield us from overwhelming social forces that tend to make us part of the problem.

Says Wise: "We could make our lives a hell of a lot easier if we'd just embrace the complication and confront the contradictions with our eyes and our hearts wide open, willing to celebrate our victories but also willing to learn from our failures."

One of the most powerful moments comes when he relays the story of an early lecture. A young white woman spoke up with, "I really agree with you, and would love to do the kind of work you do, but I'm afraid black people won't trust me, won't accept my contribution." In the interests of furthering rather than suppressing debate, he chose to let an obviously angry black woman give the expected response. "Make NO mistake, we do hate you and we don't trust you for one minute!"

He gives a thoughtful reply, excerpted thusly:
"Ultimately, I'm not doing this for you... I don't view it as my job to fight racism so as to save you from it. To do so would be paternalistic... I fight racism because racism is evil and I don't want to contribute to, or collaborate with, evil. I fight it because it's a sickness in my community, and I'm trying to save myself from it."

Furthermore, in this discussion of resistance he writes:
"I want to be clear that I (and other whites) have an obligation to do this work."
"What white liberals must understand is that people of color owe us nothing. They don't owe us gratitude when we speak out about racism. They don't owe us a pat on the back. They don't owe us a goddamn thing."

Now we're getting somewhere! I do think that he could perhaps have left his readers with some more concrete tools for empowering them to be allies for people of color. But I suppose we all are meant to seek our own paths. Or maybe he'll just have to write another book.
(less)

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Jun 16, 2011 Michael rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It is rare for me to read a book twice. I can count those books on one hand. I have read this book twice, not because I enjoyed it: I didn't. I read it twice because it is important.

Brief autobiographical sketch: growing up in Somerville, MA (way before it was cool to live there), I had many black friends. By the time I went to junior high school, high school, then college, I had none. None of that was on purpose; it's just the way it happened. While I went to college, I learned from my (predict...more

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Aug 13, 2007 Colin rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: anti-racist folks, white people

Shelves: antiracism, culturalstudies, autobiography, education, non-fiction

Wise has crafted an engaging, personal and at times moving account of the effects of "whiteness" on his family and on "white" people as a whole. I also had several issues with the book.

The book's tone was somewhat uneven, as Wise used random "fuck yous" and sarcasm infrequently enough that it was somewhat jarring when it happened, and occasionally seemed forced and sanctimonious. Even though I usually like that type of writing style (like Inga Muscio, for example) I don't think Wise pulled it o...more Wise has crafted an engaging, personal and at times moving account of the effects of "whiteness" on his family and on "white" people as a whole. I also had several issues with the book.

The book's tone was somewhat uneven, as Wise used random "fuck yous" and sarcasm infrequently enough that it was somewhat jarring when it happened, and occasionally seemed forced and sanctimonious. Even though I usually like that type of writing style (like Inga Muscio, for example) I don't think Wise pulled it off that well.

I strongly disagree with his methodology of telling other white people that he's black in order to "challenge" their racism, which he has also written about elsewhere. I think that's profoundly disrespectful to the actual lived experiences of folks of color and mixed people. He also makes some sweeping and problematic generalizations, arguing for example that because of racism, "to be black in America is to not be in a position to ingest the latest social science study on the subject" of child discipline (22). In essence, he argues here that (all) black people have to beat their children/allow their children to be beaten by school authorities because of racism, and the implication is that it's because they are not well-educated enough/or don't have time enough to do otherwise. The book is framed almost exclusively in a black/white dichotomy as well, which I think profoundly limits its explorations of what whiteness really means.

On the plus side, I particularly appreciated his thoughts on the "redemption of struggle," an important re-frame of social justice work away from the progress/victory/payoff model. He quotes Desmond Tutu saying, "You do not do the things you do because others will necessarily join you in the doing of them, nor because they will ultimately prove successful. You do the things you do because the things you are doing are right." He sees "whiteness" as a "soul wound" for "white" people that severely harms our humanity even as it privileges us, and i'm inclined to agree. I also think he covers important ground when he talks about the emptiness of "whiteness" and a need to re-connect with lost European cultural histories and ancestors.

Definitely thought-provoking, worth reading. We need many, many more examples of anti-racist white folks writing books!(less)

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May 01, 2008 Shifra rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Accessible, thoughtful, challenging, provocative. Although I have read and thought a lot about race, racism, whiteness and white privilege, Wise's book adds new layers of nuance and texture to the ideas, and spells out how systemic oppression and privilege work, while trying to remain invisible. A really worthwhile read, it is also a memoir, so personal and honest.

Yet I couldn't help struggling with the fact that part of his white privilege is to make a living lecturing, teaching and writing ab...more

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Apr 05, 2008 Anthony Ricardi rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Yes, it's important for white people to talk to each other about white privilege and racism. No, I do not think this book is "the most important book of our time". I think it's arrogant of him to talk about how he makes his living doing anti-racist work with not really any discussion about what allows him to make money repeating observances about whiteness that people of color have been sharing for centuries without getting paid to do so. I also think he's such a "dude" that it made it hard for...more

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Jan 11, 2013 Camille rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: non-fiction, books-to-avoid

I was given this book in my Philosophy: Race and Racism class and I could barely get through it. A lot of the other students couldn't either it was obvious that Wise was full of himself. The entire read was dull and it went no where.
It was basically a book to make white privileged people feel sorry for being born privileged. I'm a Puerto Rican born and raised in a ghetto neighborhood, I was in no way privileged and this book disgusted me. There is no reason why white people should feel sorry fo...more

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Sep 27, 2012 Zeo rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Wise is very accessible to many white people. I am not one of those people, and I don't tend to interact in person with too many of those people, and generally find him irritating. He writes like the world is black and white, so when he starts to talk about the experiences of Black and white people he simplifies to make points in a way that tends to deny or disregard the experiences of people who don't fit so easily into that. I've often wondered if the ease of communicating issues of race along...more Wise is very accessible to many white people. I am not one of those people, and I don't tend to interact in person with too many of those people, and generally find him irritating. He writes like the world is black and white, so when he starts to talk about the experiences of Black and white people he simplifies to make points in a way that tends to deny or disregard the experiences of people who don't fit so easily into that. I've often wondered if the ease of communicating issues of race along these simplified terms is worth the cost of ingraining into so many people's heads the idea that issues of race are really that simple. I haven't figured this out yet. I don't know. I know it's a common technique so it's not all Wise here by any means, but he's one of the most well-known and commonly listened to examples of it. I found it particularly difficult to read this book because a lot of this is about his experience being a Jewish white man in the South, descendant of slave owners. That's a pretty white experience, especially as he passes. So most of what he says specifically about being Jewish and white didn't relate to my experience at all, as someone who is read as white but also Jewish and who grew up in Los Angeles as a third-generation American in spaces that were heavily Latino or Chinese so race just didn't operate along clear Black/white lines. Not that race, or my whiteness, didn't play a part; it's just not one Wise's privileged-son status seems to be aware of, much less to reflect on.

But I'm also aware that his writing does work for many people. I've watched time after time as some argument on a campus or the internet occurs, Black people say some stuff about their experiences, white people ignore them and call them oversensitive or whatever it is, Wise comes to speak on campus or a piece of his writing gets posted generally saying the exact same things the Black people were saying, all of a sudden the same white people are lauding Wise's words and thanking him for it. And that's some shit. Can that really be considered working?

But maybe that's the key to this whole thing: he's not a brilliant writer, his insights on race are not brilliant. The basic arguments about race that have been put forward so much that they're practically kneejerk reactions for many Black people, he's listened to and internalized and managed to kneejerk-repeat too, and he can come at it without the impact of the aggressions and microaggressions that he'd experience speaking up while black, and he can come at it with the privilege of being a valid source of information (on the experiences of Black people) due to being a white person, and he's famous for it.

He is a privileged son, his success is the infuriating product of a racist society, and that's some shit.(less)

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Dec 16, 2011 Meg Petersen rated it 4 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this book a lot. Wise has an engaging style of writing, and is very knowledgeable about racial issues. He happened to talk about a few things I knew a lot about, so I know he has a tendency to oversimplify a bit, but I don't disagree with the substance of what he says. He is obviously talking to whites-- he uses inclusive pronouns like "we" and "us" when referring to whites, which was a bit off-putting for me, but these are small matters. What I loved about the book was his focus on ho...more

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Jul 14, 2011 Adam rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Tulane Grads and White Folk

Shelves: non-fiction, race-and-ethnicity, sociology, memoirs

Tim Wise is an awesome writer.

White Like Me is undoubtedly the most interesting book on race I've read, if only because Wise is so readable. His keen observations and lifetime activism are not lost in pages of historical detail, abstract principles or factual references.

The power of 'White Like Me' comes from the anecdotal vignettes that are moving, telling and convincing. His language is approachable and his tone is honest. Wise clearly adheres to Stephen King's call to 'be honest' when writin...more

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Jun 15, 2010 Ami rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010

I like Tim Wise's essays, so this book is a treat. He links elements of white privilege & racism to his own life throughout the book, and (I would say) very roughly in some sort of chronological order.

Wise explains that he was a national-circuit debate team member, and his persuasive style makes it clear that he must have been pretty good. I appreciated that he smashes apart white folks' most common points of resistance to white privilege in the introduction, so we can acknowledge and accep...more

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Jan 17, 2010 Jennifer rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, activism, race, owned

It's all thanks to Matt Peters that I discovered this engaging and informative book. Matt has frequently linked to Wise's anti-racist writings, so I added a few of his books to my wishlist and finally scored this off of paperbackswap.

This book is what it sounds like it should be, a memoir about race and white privilege. Wise does a remarkable job not just of identifying his own privilege and chronicling his anti-racism activism, but also owning up to times when he dropped the ball -- when his pr...more

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Dec 08, 2011 Elizabeth rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Of the three books we read for my Race & Ethnicity course, this was by far my favorite. Wise's writing style is approachable yet provocative. The heaviness of the material is in no way clouded by the witty, sardonic anecdotes Wise delivers so well. This is a must read for anyone, especially those who consider themselves "liberal" or "antiracist" because chances are, you still have a thing or two to learn. Often people will refer to the underprivileged, but it is extremely rare for someone to...more

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Aug 21, 2012 Chris rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: recommended

Someone I know gave up on teaching this book to her students in the urban off-campus program of an affluent Christian college, because it upset them so much. I can't think of a better recommendation, but I'll post a few excerpts as I work through the book.

If you're not a person of color, and you live in the US, please at least consider reading this book. I'd love to hear from you if you do, whether you agree with it, find it outrageous, or anything in between.

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Oct 27, 2012 Katie Sargent rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: biography-memoir, educational-culture, educational-history

Tim Wise addresses the issues of how race prejudice and privilege are still alive and well, and how they manifest themselves in the daily lives of white Americans. He does this by sharing many stories of what life has been like for him and how he has experienced privilege because of his status as a white male. I recommend it with the request you keep listening, even when you disagree with his more liberal political sensibilities, much of what he says is valuable and something white American's ne...more

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May 03, 2011 Lina rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: memoir, non-fiction

A few years ago, if someone would have asked me if I had been allowed at birth to decide my race, I would have chosen to be white, the answer would have been a resounding yes. It wasn't that I hated being black, it was just that, up until the last two years of high-school I firmly believed that I would have had a better life it I were white. It wasn't until I grew up--a lot, that I realized that my troubles were not unique to my race, it just seemed that way. I learned to love my blackness and n...more A few years ago, if someone would have asked me if I had been allowed at birth to decide my race, I would have chosen to be white, the answer would have been a resounding yes. It wasn't that I hated being black, it was just that, up until the last two years of high-school I firmly believed that I would have had a better life it I were white. It wasn't until I grew up--a lot, that I realized that my troubles were not unique to my race, it just seemed that way. I learned to love my blackness and not allow the stereotypes to define how I should be. That being said-a part of me will always believe that my life would have been improved somewhat by being white.

[My life in Disney GIFS]

V.S

]

Tim Wise's book White Like Me expressed some ideas that have long held, but never felt it was my place to say. After all for many years my only interpretation of white people was limited to those I knew in passing at camps and things of that nature. I grew up in a mostly black low-income neighborhood so I had no white friends. When I went to college I suddenly had nothing, but white friends [who I love dearly]. It was in college and with my white friends that I experienced feeling like the other. Suddenly I was able to see how other races saw my own in live-time and it was terrifying.

As a "token" I had to hear comments like "why did all those black people have to move up here and not you...we like you Princess." It's one of those things were you are can only have two reactions and neither a very productive. A part of me wanted to just tell them how racist that sounded, but the other really wondered if they even understood why that comment would be racist. This is the type of issues that this books brings up and honestly, I'm thankful for it, because I thought it was just me.

Wise brings up evidence of white privilege in a very well-spoken, down to earth manner. I found myself nodding as I was reading, but also in the back of my mind saying 'well of course your nodding Princess, this book isn't for you.' This book is for the white public, but I do recommend it to blacks to get a perspective of the lighter side of the field.
4/5(less)

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Nov 20, 2010 Megan rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2010, social-justice, nonfiction

Quotes:

"To be white is, even more, to be born into a system that has been set up for the benefit of people like you (like us), and as such provides a head start to those who can claim membership in this, the dominant club (xi)."

"Being a member of the majority, the dominant group, allows one to ignore how race shapes one's life. For those of us called white, whiteness simply is. Whiteness becomes, for us, the unspoken, uninterrogated norm, taken for granted, much as water can be taken for granted...more Quotes:

"To be white is, even more, to be born into a system that has been set up for the benefit of people like you (like us), and as such provides a head start to those who can claim membership in this, the dominant club (xi)."

"Being a member of the majority, the dominant group, allows one to ignore how race shapes one's life. For those of us called white, whiteness simply is. Whiteness becomes, for us, the unspoken, uninterrogated norm, taken for granted, much as water can be taken for granted by a fish (2)."

On teachers claiming they don't "see" race: "The kids in those classrooms do have a race, and their race matters, because it says a lot about the kinds of challenges they are likely to face. To not see color is, as Julian Bond has noted, tod not see the consequences of color; and if color has consequences, which it surely does, yet you've resolved not to notice the thing that brings about those consequences, the odds are pretty good that you'll underserve the needs of the students in question, every time (21)." This is on my mind in regards to parenting and has been since I read NutureSchock. We can't ignore race issues with our children.

"Without question, I saw far more drugs, drug use, and drug dealing going on at Tulane, on my dorm floor alone, in any given week, than I ever saw in public housing projects... And as with the drinking and drug use in high school, it was overwhelmingly a white person's game... there's something about being white in this country that allows one, even encourages one, to take a lot of stupid risks, knowing that nine times out of ten everything will work out; you won't get busted and you won't go to jail, neither of which black or brown folks can take for granted in the least (40)."

On cops,racial profiling and white privilege: "Because no matter the crime being committed, I am not the sterotype (42)."

On poverty, unemployment and the welfare reform of the 90s: "If he (a construction business owner) can't hire, they can't work, and if they can't work, what are they supposed to do? In other words, what he was telling me- not what I was telling him but what he was telling me about the economy, and about unemployment- was making the case against punitive welfare reform. If people are out of work, in large part because of a monetary policy that requires a hiring slowdown (because, in the eyes of the Fed, too little unemployment might cause wages to rise, God forbid, and that would spark inflation), then poverty is no accident, and it's not due to laziness. It is the result of a deliberate policy (112)."

"For teenagers, the process of discover can be even more elaborate, because their ability to conduct research will have developed well beyond the capacity that existed for them as kids. Have them observe the way that gas costs more in poor black neighborhoods than in rich white ones. Go to groceries in white neighborhoods and then communities of color, and have them compare the quality of the merchandise, especially the fresh produce. Have them watch the news for two weeks and keep a journal of the differential ways in which whites and folks of color are portrayed. Drive around a white neighborhood, even one that is only middle class, and then drive through a mostly black or brown community, taking notes as to how many banks and ATM machines you see in the former, and how many pawn shops or check-cashing outlets you see in the latter. Ask why your child thinks there might be a difference (118)."

"The most dangerous person is the one who refuses to admit that he contributes to injustice at least as often as, isf not more than, he truly rebels against it. Such a person is capable of learning nothing, because he honestly perceives himself to be in such control of his beliefs and actions, that there is simply nothing anyone else can teach him, nothing on which he needs to work, and no point at which he too is part of the problem, at least sometimes (128)."

On the end outcome of eridacating racism: " What whites have rarely had to think about- because as the dominant group we are so used to having our will be done, with a little effort at least- is that maybe the point is not victory, however much we all wish to see justice attained and injustice routed. Maybe our redemption comes from the struggle itself. Maybe it is in the effort, the striving for equality and freedom that we become human (175)."

These are just some of the quotes I noted as I read the book. I think this book is something most people would benefit from. Most of us are against racism, but don't notice the institutional racism all around us. It's also hard to think of the privilege my race has afforded me. In the discrimination class I took in college, we all had to make a "privilege list." I made my list on straight pribilege, but I maybe need to do that in regards to race.

The end chaper was something I could have quoted, if not for its length. It's an open letter to white America and Katrina an its aftermath. I thought I know of the injustices that took place during and after Katrina, but I had no idea. It's sad. He doesn't blame anyone or anything in particular, because it was so many things. You just need to read it.(less)

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Aug 20, 2012 joanna rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: race

Tim Wise is articulate and impassioned in his exploration of how white privilege has impacted his life. He points out, clearly, the small ways that being white has smoothed his path, and how hard it is to counteract the indoctrination of racism, even for someone who has actively worked against it his entire life. There are a few moments of crystal-clarity, helping to illuminate the right reasons to do antiracist work, and how to continue in the work even when it feels that the world is undermini...more

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Jun 08, 2011 Mr. Woodnal rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Every white person needs to read this book. Although I'm not white, I picked it up for a variety of reasons. The immediate impetus was a discussion I had with my senior students a few weeks ago focused on race. It was one of those moments where the teacher totally scraps the day's lesson because we began an impromptu important conversation that was both necessary and difficult. I teach in a mostly white suburban school, and as a non-white teacher, my perspective and logic doesn't always speak to...more Every white person needs to read this book. Although I'm not white, I picked it up for a variety of reasons. The immediate impetus was a discussion I had with my senior students a few weeks ago focused on race. It was one of those moments where the teacher totally scraps the day's lesson because we began an impromptu important conversation that was both necessary and difficult. I teach in a mostly white suburban school, and as a non-white teacher, my perspective and logic doesn't always speak to the majority of my students in the way that I want it to. I had been meaning to read Wise's book for a while, and after that discussion with my students, I decided it was time to do so in the hopes that it would give me some insight on the white perspective, as well as some specific responses that might be heard more readily by a white audience of teenagers.

Over the past few years since adopting an African American daughter, I've done a fair amount of reading about race and privilege in this country. My family is marginalized in a lot of ways--gay parents; my husband is white, but I am Dutch Indonesian; two adopted kids, one black and one Hispanic--so I've been trying to educate myself recently on ways in which I can help my kids navigate the difficult waters of twenty-first century America. Because of this though, I did find the book's beginning a bit slow, since I had already been a convert for several years to the existence of white privilege; these early chapters are important for Wise's later discussions, but I do wish he had included additional statistics and research, something he does a lot of later on in the book. He does initially though make his position very clear while at the same time addressing inevitable criticisms and counter-arguments. He makes it a point to note that he is "not claiming...that all white are wealthy and powerful. We live not only in a racialized society, but also in a class system, a patriarchal system, and one of straight supremacy/heterosexism, able-bodied supremacy, and Christian hegemony. These other forms of privilege, and the oppression experienced by those who can't manage to access them, mediate, but never fully eradicate, something like white privilege." The specific focus of the book though is on whiteness and how being "white is to rarely find oneself feeling 'out of place' the way a person of color would likely" feel being lost on the back roads of Idaho in the middle of a storm, and he is quick to point out that "being white in an urban, mostly black and brown community is hardly equivalent" because whites rarely "find [themselves] in such places [except] by choice" while "people of color can't really avoid white spaces, and if they do it's probably because they live in the poorest areas and are the most destitute persons of color around."

After establishing a strong foundation for the existence of white privilege, he moves on to discuss specific ways in which it and the pernicious effects of systemic and institutionalized racism can be countered. As I have often heard people say that homophobia is really the problem of heterosexuals, Wise claims that "only when whites start challenging other whites, and begin to break the wall of silence that so often enables racist behavior, is anything likely to change"; however he offers such advice with a keen sense of pragmatism. He notes that confronting those who tell racist jokes for example is better than nothing, but just telling them that the joke offends you simply forces the racism underground--it doesn't really do anything to change the racist thinking that prompted it. He talks about ways in which we can engage people ignorant of white privilege and institutionalized racism in rhetorical discussions, something to which I paid great attention as a teacher. After all, as Wise consistently says, there is much more to eliminating racism than simply being an individually good person and that racism exists even where we would like to ignore it: "white folks all around the nation sometimes mistake being civil and kind and 'nice' with actually doing something to end injustice. But just because you're nice to people, just because you chat around the water cooler, or whatever, doesn't mean that racism and inequity aren't present in the place where you work or go to school."

While much of the text is depressing in its accounting of the realities of our country, there are moments of optimism and hope. Wise suggests that "it is always harder to stand up for what's right if you think you're the only one doing it. But if we understood that there is a movement in history of which we might be a part, as allies to people of color, how much easier might it be to begin and sustain that process of resistance?" He advocates for reshaping the way we educate and socially condition our children (there is a fantastic section about the media we expose our kids too, especially Disney films), and proposes that we must be more than explicit with them about our words and actions in relation to race, quoting James Baldwin saying, "Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them."

The entire book is incredibly convincing, although I'm sure I'm overly impressionable in this regard; he extends his thought process to many aspects of our culture, from the myth of the American Dream to fallacy of liberalism in the media. He theorizes on school shootings and Welfare reform, and this edition of the text even includes his open letter to whites following Hurricane Katrina. Persuasively expansive, this is an important book that should be required for the dominant members of our society.(less)

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May 03, 2013 Mark Andrews rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I read this book for discussion in an interracial clergy group which meets weekly. I learned a lot about racism in America, and Wise's anecdotes caused me to reflect on the breadth of my privileges as a white male, and to empathize more deeply with what it might be like to be a person of color in this country. My two criticisms - 1) The book feels like a memoir and Wise comes off a little self-righteous, and 2) Wise strains every life event through the racism filter which seems to be overreachin...more

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Jan 27, 2012 Terra rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: White People.

Shelves: social-problems

The content of this book is outstanding. Wise makes many a good point about whiteness and the privilege it allows for and I did take away a lot of information in reading this book. Wise brings up a a lot of great points that I think more white people need to hear.

My problem with this book, was the tone. Wise assumed the reader was an absolute idiot, and he comes off in the book as such a dude, such a bro, that I had a hard time keeping up with it. I loved the content, hated the tone. And it was...more The content of this book is outstanding. Wise makes many a good point about whiteness and the privilege it allows for and I did take away a lot of information in reading this book. Wise brings up a a lot of great points that I think more white people need to hear.

My problem with this book, was the tone. Wise assumed the reader was an absolute idiot, and he comes off in the book as such a dude, such a bro, that I had a hard time keeping up with it. I loved the content, hated the tone. And it wasn't that what he was saying was hard for me to hear - no. A lot of the topics he raised are things I'd thought about and have even studied. It's just that when I read a book like this, I want to put it down feeling inspired, not like I was just berated for being born white. I understand that he was trying to point out how we're all a little bit racist, no matter how hard we try to squash it, but someone who's going to pick up his book is generally not going to be someone who needs a lecture about what a jerk they are for being white for 200 pages.

What turned me off the most was his epilogue on Katrina, a 10 page bitch session about how "I" don't know what really happened there, about how "I" still think race didn't play an issue in the awful events that took place in New Orleans in 2005. His assumptions on my ignorance left me frustrated and annoyed. Frankly, as I watched the television news coverage in 2005, which Wise complains about for several pages, I was well aware that race was an issue. I've seen the newspaper clippings of a black woman holding her child and a loaf of bread with a caption explaining how she was looting and the other newspaper clipping of a white woman doing the exact same thing with a caption explaining she was searching for food to provide for her child. I get it. Race was the bigger issue than the hurricane, a fact I knew as soon as I saw the news coverage. I really didn't need a letter from him explaining it all to me, accusing me of sticking my head in the sand or pretending like it wasn't an issue. He could have explained it differently, without insulting my intelligence.(less)

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Jul 06, 2009 Jesse rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

At first I was annoyed with Wise's habit of writing everything as if meant to be underlined by undergraduate sociology students, as well as his tendency to reiterate points as if it's assumed that it wouldn't be grasped the first time around. But I stuck with it, for not only was it pointed out that maybe I'm just lucky that some of these things aren't completely new for me (and yes, Jane, you can take most of the credit there), but because Wise has a formidable talent for using personal anecdot...more

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Feb 23, 2009 David rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I am unsure how I feel about this book. Wise makes many strong points on notions of race and anti-racism, but at times I find him to willing to paint white people and the history of whites with the brush of his own ancestors. At times I find him too abrupt and not pragmatic about how race relations need to be improved in our nation.

Too many stories and too much of his own words of wisedom. However, I have many take aways from his book and have found his book as a good tool to critique and check...more

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Sep 27, 2009 M. Aedin rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: diversity

I really wish I could blackmail, bribe, force, or otherwise entice everyone I know to read this book. There are very few people who would not benefit from this honest exploration of white privilege and how it's not only harmful to people of color, but to whites as well.

I had to read it for a Sociology class in school, and I know some of my classmates were annoyed at the conversational style of the book, but I felt that was one of its strengths. It was at all times engaging and easy to read, even...more

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Mar 12, 2013 Andrew rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: nonfiction

The content of this book is laudable. This is an issue that I've developed a passion for in recent years, and I'm glad that this book exists because I believe that more awareness about this problem can only lead to good things. White Like Me is a book that all white people I know would benefit from reading, as I've found that most are remarkably unaware of the beneficial role that white privilege and institutional racism has played in their lives and the extent to which de facto segregation and...more

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Aug 16, 2009 Zak rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A very important book by a sharp critic of the American racial landscape. I accept his central thesis that whites are extremely privileged in this society, and that this is to the detriment of people of color. Where the book falters is in some of the examples the author cites as evidence of white privilege. It can be very difficult to prove that a person's race played a role in a given situation when the topic of race is never actually voiced in that situation. So Wise makes assumptions about ho...more

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Jul 29, 2010 Scott rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Discusses the role that white privilege plays in perpetuating systems of inequality. I read this book during the week that Shirley Sherrod lost her job with the Department of Agriculture, that a small town in Illinois decided to make English as its official language (supporters held up signs saying, "We are all Arizonians now") and the local paper ran the front page story of a murder in Rosemount, including a picture of the alleged murderer (who was black) and a picture of the victim (who was wh...more

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Jun 09, 2010 Molly rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

White privilege is something I didn't understand very well until I became a public school teacher. I think I understand better after reading this book. I certainly had a few moments of resistance and/or shame while reading, as I think many readers would. It's hard for anyone to recognize their own privilege, to buy into the idea that they *are* privileged, when they don't feel so in other ways. We all believe we're struggling.

This book is entirely anecdotal, which might make it easy for some to...more

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Nov 30, 2010 Audacia Ray rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: cultural-studies, read-in-2010

Wise's book is interesting and useful as an introduction for white people to encourage thinking about race and privilege. That's a good thing, for sure - but it's a safe and white-mediated approach to thinking about race. For real and challenging stuff on race, you should actually be reading writers who are people of color. Case in point: each chapter opens with a relevant quote from James Baldwin's writings - and I recommend that you prioritize reading and listening to Baldwin instead of Wise.

I...more

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May 30, 2010 Zac rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A great primer for those beginning their studies of racial dynamics in America. At times, though, I felt Wise coming from a place of answers more than questions. I needed more questions to provoke my thinking. Other times, I worried Wise was speaking from a place of connectedness and uniformity I don't feel exists within any one race or ethnicity. I wanted to yell, "Stop, you're not speaking for me or to my experience."

The last piece that held up my appreciation for the text was Wise's style. Te...more

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Feb 18, 2009 Erin rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Tim Wise is an anti-racist activist. This book is an insightful look at white privilege and the need to address racism at its very core-- the white American psyche. I agree with his argument that all white Americans benefit from white privilege in all aspects of life. We need to understand this privilege and recognize our own internal racism and deal with it. I gave the book three stars because I thought many of his personal stories were too long-winded and repetitive. However, I did appreciate...more

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About Tim Wise

Tim Wise is among the most prominent anti-racist writers and activists in the U.S., and has been called the foremost white anti-racist intellectual in the nation, having spoken in 46 states, and on over 300 college campuses, including Harvard, Stanford, Cal Tech and the Law Schools at Yale, Columbia, Michigan, and Vanderbilt.

From 1999 to 2003, Wise served as an advisor to the Fisk University Race...more Tim Wise is among the most prominent anti-racist writers and activists in the U.S., and has been called the foremost white anti-racist intellectual in the nation, having spoken in 46 states, and on over 300 college campuses, including Harvard, Stanford, Cal Tech and the Law Schools at Yale, Columbia, Michigan, and Vanderbilt.

From 1999 to 2003, Wise served as an advisor to the Fisk University Race Relations Institute and in the early 90s was Associate Director of the Louisiana Coalition Against Racism and Nazism: the group credited by many with the political defeat of white nationalist, David Duke. His anti-racism efforts have been termed revolutionary by NYU professor and award-winning author, Robin D.G. Kelley, and have also earned praise from such noted race scholars as Michael Eric Dyson, Kimberl Crenshaw, Derrick Bell, Joe Feagin, Lani Guinier, and Richard Delgado.

Tim Wise is now the Director of the newly-formed Association for White Anti-Racist Education (AWARE) in Nashville, Tennessee. He lectures across the country about the need to combat institutional racism, gender bias, and the growing gap between rich and poor in the U.S. Wise has been called a "leftist extremist" by David Duke, "deceptively Aryan-looking" by a member of the Ku Klux Klan, and "the Uncle Tom of the white race," by right-wing author, Dinesh D' Souza. Whatever else can be said about him, his ability to make the right kind of enemies seems unquestioned.

Wise is a featured columnist with the ZNet Commentary program: a web service that disseminates essays by prominent progressive and radical activists and educators. His writings are taught at hundreds of colleges and have appeared in dozens of popular and professional journals. Wise serves as the Race and Ethnicity Editor for LIP Magazine, and articles about his work have appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Washington Post and San Francisco Chronicle.

He has contributed to three recent anthologiesWhen Race Becomes Real: Black and White Writers Confront Their Personal Histories (Chicago Review Press, Jan 2004); Should America Pay (HarperAmistad, 2003), a compilation of essays concerning slavery and its aftermath; and The Power of Non-Violence (Beacon Press, 2002)."(less)

More about Tim Wise...

Books by Tim Wise

Between Barack and a Hard Place: Racism and White Denial in the Age of Obama

Colorblind: The Rise of Post-Racial Politics and the Retreat from Racial Equity

Speaking Treason Fluently: Anti-Racist Reflections From an Angry White Male

Dear White America: Letter to a New Minority

Affirmative Action: Racial Preference in Black and White

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“The power of resistance is to set an example: not necessarily to change the person with whom you disagree, but to empower the one who is watching and whose growth is not yet completed, whose path is not at all clear, whose direction is still very much up in the proverbial air.” — 20 people liked it

“So, in "Melting Pot" the children (about a third of whom were kids of color) sang the line, "America was the new world and Europe was the old," in one stroke eradicating the narratives of indigenous persons for whom America was hardly new, and any nonwhite kids whose old worlds had been in Africa or Asia, not Europe.” — 9 people liked it

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