Black Liberation 101: 28 Books to Understand Racism and the Black Experience in America

This groundbreaking book chronicles the lives of Black women throughout the history of the United States. 

Following enslaved and free women, and those within and outside the law, authors Daina Ramey Berry and Kali Nicole Gross center the perspectives of Black women in the United States, showcasing their integral — and often unseen — contributions to the shaping of America.

More: Start the Dialogue at Home With These Books About Race

Published in 1995, bell hooks’ killing rage posits that there is no way to eradicate systemic racism without simultaneously addressing sexism, and more specifically, the blend of racism and sexism (named misogynoir) that is uniquely experienced by Black women. 

The 23 essays tackle Black and white female friendships, racism and antisemitism, and rage as a catalyst for positive change — all still timely topics over 25 years later. 

Beginning in a world that once linked fatness to beauty and health, Fearing the Black Body traverses from the Renaissance to present day, uncovering how the association of fatness with savagery emerged during the Enlightenment era of the 18th century. 

Using art, newspaper articles, and medical texts, author Sabrina Strings showcases the origins of anti-fatness and argues that fatphobia has never been about health, but rather a way to systemically target Black people. 

Chronicling the life of one of the most famous civil rights leaders in his own words, Malcolm X’s journey is one that is inextricably bound to the story of Blackness and racism in the U.S. 

Journeying through his time as a petty criminal, his rise in the Black Muslim movement, and his differing politics than that of his contemporary, Martin Luther King Jr., The Autobiography of Malcolm X has been essential reading since its release in 1964. 

For an even deeper look into the life of Malcolm X, try The Dead Are Arising by Les Payne and Tamara Payne.

Author Ebony Elizabeth Thomas discusses the necessity of literature that reflects the reader and the current diversity crisis plaguing our classrooms, our books, and our media. 

Using close reads and analyses of Harry Potter, The Vampire Diaries, The Hunger Games, and more, Thomas delves into how Blackness is shaped when those who are writing it are not Black, not in conversation with Black people, and lack the imagination to imagine what Blackness might look like outside of the confines of stereotype and tropes.

Part memoir, part cultural criticism, Tressie McMillan Cottom’s Thick is already a classic and dissects with wit and cuttingly sharp analysis what it means to be Black, woman, and thick when systemic injustices and media portrayal continuously present you as other and relegate you to the margins of society.

Even more than two decades later, Dorothy Roberts’ Killing the Black Body remains a seminal read for those interested in the intersection of racism and reproductive rights in America. 

From dismantling the stereotypes of the welfare queen to exposing America’s insidious ownership of Black women’s bodies — from slavery reproduction to forced sterilization — Roberts shows how these abuses contribute to the degradation of Black women and the exclusion of our needs in the modern-day civil rights and feminist movements.

Through letters and first-person narration, we follow the intertwined lives of Celie, Netty, Shug, and Sofia, who have all been affected in heartbreaking ways by misogynoir — the unique, dual experience of racism and sexism that Black women face.

Alice Walker centers the voices and experiences of Black women, allowing us to dive into the complex, gorgeous, and necessary existence of Black female relationships in a culture that places them last.

Co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement Patrisse Khan-Cullors details her coming-of-age experiences in LA — stories that are heartbreakingly common for many young Black kids in America — filled with racism, persecution, violence, and fear of the government and our criminal justice system.

Learn about how her and her co-founders went from hashtag to movement after the killing of Trayvon Martin went viral in 2013, and how a movement that called for justice suddenly positioned them as a threat to the country. A story still being written, this memoir is a must-read to understand the roots of a major political voice of our lifetime. 

Black Panther Assata Shakur chronicles her lifelong work in activism, the strengths and weaknesses of pivotal resistance movements, and the American government's attempts to criminalize, dismantle, and eradicate Black nationalist organizations.

For more autobiographical books by Black leaders, try The Autobiography of Malcolm X and Angela Davis: An Autobiography.

Ten years later and still as critical, necessary, and scathing as ever, Michelle Alexander's The New Jim Crow is essential reading. Alexander argues that American institutionalized slavery has never been abolished — instead, it has been redirected right into our nation’s prison systems, which disproportionality targets its Black citizens.

White feminism has become more than just a phrase; it is now indicative of a type of modern-day feminism that raises white cis-hetero concerns to the forefront while completely ignoring the intersectional struggles of other women, especially Black women.

Mikki Kendall expands on her Twitter trending hashtag #solidarityisforwhitewomen in a series of essays that explore everything from politics to pop culture, hunger to hyper-sexualization.

Looking for more like this? Try Tressie McMillan Cottom's THICK: And Other Essays.

What does it mean to be a Black man in the South? What does it mean to be a Black woman inextricably tied to them? Jesmyn Ward lays bare her soul in this beautifully rendered memoir that unfolds with the death of five pivotal men in her life within the span of 5 years.

Angela Davis' most recent collection of essays, speeches, and interviews focuses on the connections between Black liberation movements in America and movements abroad, connected by a desire to free ourselves from state terror, violence, and systemic persecution.

For more on riots and radical movements, read David F. Krugler's 1919, The Year of Racial Violence: How African Americans Fought Back.

Sociologist Dorceta Taylor exposes the systemic issues that allow for poor Black and brown communities to be exposed to environmental hazards and develop otherwise preventable medical issues.

For more information on environmental racism, gentrification, and housing disparities in Black communities, try How to Kill a City by P.E. Moskowitz, Evicted by Matthew Desmond, and The Color of Lawby Richard Rothstein.

Robin DiAngelo is brutally honest in her conversational book with other white people about why it is so uncomfortable for them to talk about race and racism — and how imperative it is to move beyond that discomfort and dismantle a system that they've benefitted from.

For more works like these, try So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo and White Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide by Carol Anderson.

Using archival texts, slave narratives, films, and literature, C. Riley Snorton shines a light on the history of some of our most marginalized Black figures. 

Arguing that the very erasure of trans individuals in our histories has led to our society's backwards, incorrect understanding of trans people, Snorton seeks to amplify the voices of those who have been silenced.

Cedric J. Robinson dissects traditionally European Marxism through a Black lens, highlighting how crucial Black people are as agents of change while critiquing both white Marxists and Black capitalists for the lack of acknowledgment around the racial history of capitalism. He expounds on Marxist thought in the form of Black resistance in both Europe and America.

For other important conversations on the intersection of racism, capitalism, and Black radicalism, check out Robinson's collection of essays, Cedric J. Robinson: On Racial Capitalism, Black Internationalism, and Cultures of Resistance, or Futures of Black Radicalism by Gaye Theresa Johnson.

Considered an authority on the psychology of racism, the President Emeritus of Spelman College poses a simple question with a not-so-simple answer: Why do Black and brown kids frequently group together in school settings, even ones that are racially diverse? 

Beverly Daniel Tatum explores self-segregation as a coping mechanism and discusses how a no-nonsense policy on discussing racial identities with white children can help put an end to this in the future.

For more books on around race and education, try When Affirmative Action Was White by Ira Katznelson.

Ibram Kendi posits that it is not enough to be aware that racism exists — one must be actively antiracist to effectively help dismantle it. 

A small book that packs a mighty punch, Kendi clearly identifies different ways that racism can show up, explains the consequences of these racist ideas, thoughts, and actions, and then lays out a clear plan to actively oppose them in both our systems and in ourselves.

For more from Ibram Kendi, read the National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning, which uses the life stories of five major American intellectuals to dissect the history of racist ideas in the U.S.

The role of white women in slavery has often been diminished to unwilling participants in the practice, them being victims themselves of gendered oppression. 

In author Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers’ compelling work, she extensively researches and presents evidence of white women's active participation in buying, owning, and selling slaves, directly benefiting from a practice that often became their primary source of wealth.

Unapologetic argues that true liberation is only found when our Black radical movements are intersectional; that they are more queer, more feminist, and more committed to eradicating class disparity. 

This part-historical text, part how-to guide is the perfect intro course for those looking to embrace transformative, visionary leadership.

What does it mean to be a Black woman in this world? To pursue self-love and self-efficacy in a society that asserts that you can't?

Zora Neale Hurston's beloved fiction text is no less relevant for Black girls and women today, and it's a must-read for those who want to better understand what it is to be a Black woman fully realized.

For more stories that feature beautifully rendered, complex Black women, try Sula by Toni Morrison, All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes by Maya Angelou, and In Love & Trouble from Alice Walker.

Uncannily prescient as always, Octavia Butler's Earthseed Duology (Parable of the Sower and Parable of the Talents) follows precocious teen Lauren in a post-apocalyptic America, now ravaged by global climate change, economic collapse, looting, and a narcissistic, maniacal leader. 

Her ability to sense other people’s emotions — once considered a liability — becomes her saving grace as she develops a new faith and journeys to find a safe haven for herself and her followers.

For more sci-fi/fantasy and dystopian fiction, try N.K. Jemisin's Inheritance Trilogy and Tomi Adeyemi's Children of Blood and Bone.

Audre Lorde’s influence on Black feminist thought cannot be overstated. In a collection of 15 essays and speeches, Sister Outsider tackles themes of sexism, racism, ageism, homophobia, and class with unflinching lyricism, and she reflects on how these prejudices can be a "vehicle for action and change" in America.

For more must-read Black feminist texts, check out Angela Davis' Women, Race, and Class, Audre Lorde's other seminal work, Zami: A New Spelling of My Name, Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor's How We Get Free, and Melissa Harris-Perry's Sister Citizen.

Toni Morrison's first novel tackles racism, colorism, class disparity, and gendered beauty ideals as seen through the lens of the young, dark-skinned Black girl Pecola Breedlove. 

All of Morrison's work is required reading, but if you're looking to get started on some of her nonfiction texts, Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary Imagination is a long-standing favorite. 

Considered essential reading on the phenomenon of "passing" in Black communities, we follow childhood friends Irene and Clare — the latter girl passes for white.

As the friends reconnect in their adulthood, they are both equally repulsed and seduced by the other's lifestyles and are forced to grapple with their decisions and relationship with each other.

Almost religious in its telling, The Fire Next Time consists only of two letters, but its legacy has become bigger than its page count. 

James Baldwin's letters are at once both sermons and confessions, indictments and calls to action, provocative prayers and emotional eulogies — for his life in Harlem, for the state of America, and for the future of Black people. As intensely relevant now as it was back then, The Fire Next Time is required reading for Black and white audiences alike. 

For a beautiful homage to Baldwin's quintessential work, read The Fire This Time, a selection of essays and poems curated by Jesmyn Ward.