White Rage

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Growing up, in school all we really learned about the struggles of black people were slavery and segregation. It was glossed over and glammed up to seem as if once the Civil Rights movement was over African Americans received equal rights and then everyone held hands and sang Kumbaya. This is far from the truth, since the end of slavery in 1865 up until now in 2017, African Americans still deal with intolerance and do not receive equal rights. Carol Anderson has written a book that is extremely powerful, yet infuriating and depressing. Anderson does a fantastic job of showcasing the systematic oppression of African Americans throughout history.
White Rage is the anger as a result of insecurity White Americans feel when minorities, particularly …show more content…

Each of the chapters foucus on a time period where white rage was running rampant. The chapters include: Reconstructing Recontruction, Derailing the Great Migration, Burning Brown to the Ground, Rolling Back Civil Rights, and How to Unelect a Black President.
In the chapter “How to Unelect a Black President,” Anderson tells us that Barack Obama’s 2008 election brought out a record number of African American voters; it was almost the same as whites. After this many states started emplacing voter ID laws- these laws make it harder for minorities to vote. This change might seem small to some people, but they showcase the passive aggressive nature of white rage. Anderson says, “White rage is not about visible violence, but rather works its way through the courts, the legislatures, and a range of government bureaucracies. It wreaks havoc subtly, almost imperceptibly.” Anderson does a fantastic job of showcasing the systematic oppression of African Americans throughout history. America has come a long way when it comes to racism, but there is still a long way to come. Racism has been integrated in justice system at local, state, and federal levels. All Americans need to face and accept it’s racist and violent past and present, and then address the racist and violent issues of today. I encourage everyone, no matter of race, to read this