A curated collection of books and podcasts designed to provide valuable insights, foster understanding, and promote action towards creating a more inclusive and equitable society. These resources cover a range of topics, including leadership, introversion, inclusivity, diversity, and systemic racism. Dive into these recommendations to deepen your knowledge and equip yourself with the tools needed for meaningful change in our churches.
Books
Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts.
Brené Brown
Brené Brown delves into the realm of leadership, emphasizing the courage required for authentic connection and meaningful dialogue in the workplace.
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking.
Susan Cain
Susan Cain explores the strength and value of introversion in a society that often prizes extroversion, offering insights on how introverts can thrive in various environments.
Better Allies: Everyday Actions to Create Inclusive, Engaging Workplaces
Karen Catlin
Karen Catlin provides practical strategies for fostering inclusivity and diversity in professional settings through everyday actions and behaviors.
Deep Diversity: Overcoming Us vs. Them
Shakil Choudhury
Shakil Choudhury delves into the complexities of racial dynamics, emphasizing the need for a deep understanding of the human mind to foster inclusivity and overcome divisions.
White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism
Robin DiAngelo
Robin DiAngelo dissects the concept of white fragility, shedding light on how it perpetuates racial inequality and offering insights into engaging in constructive conversations about race.
Academic Ableism
Jay Timothy Dolmage
Jay Timothy Dolmage critically examines the ways in which academia can perpetuate ableism, advocating for more inclusive educational environments that benefit all students.
Tell Me Who You Are: Sharing Our Stories of Race, Culture, & Identity
Winona Guo and Priya Vulchi
Winona Guo and Priya Vulchi collect and share diverse stories of race, culture, and identity, fostering understanding and empathy across communities.
Overcoming Bias: Building Authentic Relationships across Differences
Tiffany Jana and Matthew Freeman
Tiffany Jana and Matthew Freeman provide a roadmap for building authentic relationships across differences, challenging biases, and promoting inclusivity.
Erasing Institutional Bias: How to Create Systemic Change for Organizational Inclusion
Tiffany Jana and Ashley Diaz Mejias
Tiffany Jana and Ashley Diaz Mejias offer strategies for creating systemic change to combat institutional bias and promote organizational inclusion.
What if I Say the Wrong Thing?: 25 Habits for Culturally Effective People
Verna A. Myers
Verna A. Myers presents practical habits for navigating cultural differences and engaging in effective communication across diverse contexts.
Color Matters: Skin Tone Bias and the Myth of a Postracial America
Kimberly Jade Norwood
Kimberly Jade Norwood explores skin tone bias and challenges the myth of a postracial America, shedding light on the ongoing complexities of race relations.
So You Want to Talk About Race
Ijeoma Oluo
Ijeoma Oluo provides a guide for engaging in meaningful conversations about race, tackling complex topics with clarity and empathy.
Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria
Beverly Daniel Tatum
Beverly Daniel Tatum examines racial identity development, offering insights into why racial segregation persists and how to promote greater inclusivity.
Uncensored: My Life and Uncomfortable Conversations at the Intersection of Black and White America
Zachary R. Wood
Zachary R. Wood shares his personal journey and experiences, highlighting the importance of uncomfortable conversations in addressing racial issues.
The Other Americans
Laila Lalami
Laila Lalami weaves together the lives of characters from diverse backgrounds, offering a nuanced exploration of identity, belonging, and the complexities of American society.
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
Michelle Alexander
Michelle Alexander exposes the systemic injustices of the American criminal justice system, shedding light on the mass incarceration of Black individuals and its implications for society.
The Fire Next Time
James Baldwin
James Baldwin reflects on race relations in America, offering powerful essays that remain relevant in addressing contemporary racial issues.
The Broken Heart of America: St. Louis and the Violent History of the United States
Walter Johnson
Walter Johnson traces the violent history of St. Louis, revealing the deep-rooted racial injustices embedded in American society.
How to Be an Antiracist
Ibram X. Kendi
Ibram X. Kendi challenges readers to actively confront and dismantle racism, offering a guide to becoming proactive agents of antiracist change.
Courageous Conversations about Race: A Field Guide for Achieving Equity in Schools
Glenn Singleton
Glenn Singleton provides a framework for engaging in courageous conversations about race, facilitating dialogue and promoting equity in educational settings.
Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption
Bryan Stevenson
Bryan Stevenson shares his experiences advocating for justice, highlighting the systemic injustices within the American legal system and the power of redemption.
Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents
Isabel Wilkerson
Isabel Wilkerson explores the concept of caste in America, revealing how social hierarchies based on race continue to shape society and perpetuate inequality.
Unfractured: A Christ-Centered Action Plan for Cultural Change
Skot Welch
Skot Welch invites readers to explore the transformative power of embracing our differences, offering a roadmap for healing fractures and building bridges in a divided world.
The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the American Church’s Complicity in Racism
Jemar Tisby
Jemar Tisby explores the role of the American church in perpetuating racial injustice, offering a vision of hope and redemption for racial reconciliation and justice.
Brown Church: Five Centuries of Latina/o Social Justice, Theology, and Identity
Robert Chao Romero
Robert Chao Romero delves into the rich history and theological contributions of Latinx Christianity in the United States, exploring its intersections with race, culture, and social justice.
How Ableism Fuels Racism: Dismantling the Hierarchy of Bodies in the Church
Lamar Hardwick
As a Black autistic pastor and disability scholar, Lamar Hardwick lives at the intersection of disability, race, and religion. Tied to this reality, he heeded the call to write How Ableism Fuels Racism to help Christian communities engage in critical conversations about race by addressing issues of ableism.
Trauma and Race: A Path to Wellbeing
Micah L. McCreary
This book is about trauma-informed counseling with racially traumatized African (Black), Latino/a/x, Asian, and Native (Indigenous) Americans (ALANAs). ALANAs face the difficulties of systemic racism and experiences of trauma.
Podcasts
Dismantling Racism Prayer Gatherings
Recordings of gatherings focused on prayer and reflection to dismantle racism.
The Antioch Podcast
A podcast dedicated to promoting racial reconciliation within the church community.
1619
A New York Times podcast exploring the history and legacy of slavery in America.
Some of My Best Friends Are
A podcast exploring the intricacies of race and friendship in America.
Come Through with Rebecca Carroll
WNYC Studios podcast engaging in conversations about race, culture, and identity.
Seeing White
Scene On Radio series examining the history and meaning of whiteness in America.
Untying Knots
A podcast on SoundCloud discussing systemic racism and the pursuit of racial justice.
A Historic Crossroads for Systemic Racism and Policing in America
Harvard Kennedy School’s PolicyCast discussing systemic racism and policing.