Recent events have caused many thoughtful Americans to reflect on our social cohesion and structures. In this book, Wilkerson performs this task through the educated lens of social theory and builds a compelling case for what needs to change in American culture. She does so by constructing a comprehensive, historical account of injustices done by “the dominant caste” to “the lower caste.” In so doing, she identifies how American society can still have enduring social hierarchies that hold us back from full human flourishing.
Wilkerson refuses to limit her analysis by using mere racial or ethnic terms on what America faces. Instead, using dominant vs. lower caste terminology, she compares and contrasts America to two other caste systems in world history – India and Nazi Germany. Although most Americans (like myself) might first react in denial that we resemble these cultures, Wilkerson is unfaltering in the communication of details that support her case. From when the first slaves arrived on our continent to the Civil War, from the racial oppression after Reconstruction to Jim Crow laws and recent political events, she builds a thorough case that America has enduring social inequities and oppressive traits.
It’s not rare to read some (usually white male – i.e., dominant caste) newspaper opinion writer deny that America is a racist country. Through her erudition, Wilkerson can persuade just about any reader that America has possessed and still possesses significant racist tendencies that we need to work on. The biggest weakness of her case is that she lumps so much into the simple concept of caste. I would have liked to have heard more division of the concept into sub-concepts, with the eventual hope of identifying behaviors that can be changed.
After the election of Donald Trump and again after the needless death of George Floyd, many Americans added anti-racist books to their reading lists in an attempt to understand and correct harmful behaviors. This book should sit atop such lists. Its scope and depth surpasses almost any other anti-racist treatments that I’ve come into contact with. It does so in a balanced and open tone that seeks honesty and self-betterment over angry retribution. I can only hope that we learn from the identified lessons because implementing change is always the hardest part.
Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents
By Isabel Wilkerson
Read by Robin Miles
Copyright (c) 2020
Random House Audio
ASIN B085VXLKRJ
14 hours, 26 minutes
Genre: Sociology
www.amazon.com