Reflections: “How to be an Antiracist” Book Study

The below statements were compiled by Liz NIchols, Valerie Walker, and Sabrina Nicholson from the book “How to Be An Antiracist” by Ibram X. Kendi.

*sources for statistics can be found in the book

•  “During the 2013-2014 academic year, Black students were four times more likely than White students to be suspended from public schools, according to Department of Education data.”
• “The average U.S life expectancy of a transgender woman of color is thirty- five years.”
•  “Black men raised in the top 1 percent by millionaires are as likely to be incarcerated as White men raised in households earning $36, 000.”
• “Black people comprise 13 percent of the U.S population.  And yet, in 2015, Black bodies accounted for at least 26 percent of those killed by police, declining slightly to 24 percent in 2016, 22 percent in 2017 and 21 percent in 2018.  This is according to the Washington Post. “
• “The black poverty rate in 2017 stood at 20 percent, nearly triple the white poverty rate. The black unemployment rate has been at least twice as high as the white unemployment rate for the last fifty years.  The wage gap between blacks and whites is the largest in forty years.  The median net worth of white families is about ten times that of black families.  According to one forecast, White households are expected to own eighty six times more wealth than black households by 2020 and sixty eight times more than Latinx households.”
• “In 2016, Black and Latinx people were still grossly overrepresented in the prison population at 56%, double their percentage of the U.S adult population. White people were still grossly underrepresented in the prison population at 30 percent, about half their percentage of the U.S adult population.
•  “Low income Black students who have at least one Black teacher in elementary school are 29% less likely to drop out of school, 39% less likely among very low – income black boys.
• “Black women are three to four times more likely to die from pregnancy -related causes than are White women.”

The statistics listed above, are just a few reasons why AVANZAR is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Every human being is entitled to live in a safe environment in which diversity is celebrated, not feared.

Feel free to review our revised Dismantling Racism “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion” statement.