Essential Books About Black HistoryLike this list

21 items

• Ain't I a Woman

  Black Women and Feminism

  Hooks, Bell

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  An analysis of how the the convergence of racism and sexism leads to the treatment of Black women as the lowest members of society. This text also speaks to how feminism often ignores and purposely leaves behind Black women.

• Assata

  An Autobiography

  Shakur, Assata

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  This autobiography was truly life-changing for me. Assata Shakur is an icon of the fight for Black liberation in the 1960s and '70s, and in her powerfully personal autobiography, Shakur details what brought her to the Civil Rights Movement…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Fire Next Time

  Baldwin, James, 1924-1987

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  James Baldwin is known for his storytelling, but it’s so important for people to get into his nonfiction essays. Addressing race, religion, and how they’ve intersected in American history, The Fire Next Time was one of the most influential…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• A Taste of Power

  a Black Woman's Story

  Brown, Elaine, 1943-

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  Historically, social justice movements are seen from the perspective of the prominent, charismatic men in leadership. Most people know Martin Luther King, John Lewis, and Huey Newton, but not Ella Baker, Diane Nash, or Elaine Brown—the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• But Some of Us Are Brave

  Black Women's Studies

  Hull, Gloria T. • Bell-Scott, Patricia • Smith, Barbara

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  Intersectional became quite the buzzword following the 2016 Women’s March, but it’s important to acknowledge that intersectionality doesn’t equal diversity. This anthology drives that message home while sharing the experiences of those at…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf

  a Choreopoem

  Shange, Ntozake

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  This series of poetic monologues reads like a play and tells the story of seven Black women and their experiences with society. With racism. With sexism. With Black men who took out their frustrations with oppression on them. Black women…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Sister Outsider

  Essays and Speeches

  Lorde, Audre

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  Race, class, gender, sexual orientation—Audre Lorde covers them all from her own personal experiences, showing how systems of oppression overlap to create new, marginalized experiences. Sister Outsider pushes all the envelopes by looking…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The New Jim Crow

  Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness

  Alexander, Michelle

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  This is required reading for anyone looking to understand how our criminal justice system is racialized and weaponized against people of color and especially Black people. (A great companion to this book is Ava DuVernay’s documentary 13th…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Bluest Eye

  Morrison, Toni

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  If you're trying to understand how "beauty" is racialized and how Black people are conditioned to aspire to whiteness, this is the novel for you. Through poetic storytelling, Morrison shows how far we go in our desire to cover up trauma…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Women, Race & Class

  Davis, Angela Y. (Angela Yvonne), 1944-

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  Angela Davis provides the gender, racial, and class analysis the world truly needs—in only the way Ms. Davis can. This is a great follow-up for those looking to dive deeper into intersectionality and how various issues are compounded for…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Divided Sisters

  Bridging the Gap Between Black Women and White Women

  Wilson, Midge

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  This one is for the white women working to be allies who don't fully understand their contentious and sometimes distrustful relationships with Black women. Black women carry so much pain passed down from former generations and derived from…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Their Eyes Were Watching God

  a Novel

  Hurston, Zora Neale

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  How can you hold an appreciation for Blackness and our culture without engaging with our greats? Our writers are not electives and it should be everyone’s mission to become acquainted with Black icons. Zora Neale Hurston is one of the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Passing

  Larsen, Nella

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  Colorism is the system by which light-skinned Black people have the privilege to transcend their race—and often, class—due to their phenotype (that is, how they present to the world). This novel takes us through the ways identity is both…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Wretched of the Earth

  Fanon, Frantz

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  The reason we haven’t eradicated racism is because most people underestimate it. Racism and colonization are deeply entrenched in every part of our society and even our psyche. Fanon makes the case in a way that feels dense but is so…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• A Study Guide for Toni Morrison's "Recitatif"

  Various Authors

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• Ain't I a Woman

  Black Women and Feminism

  Hooks, Bell

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• Assata

  An Autobiography

  Shakur, Assata

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• Sister Outsider

  Essays and Speeches

  Lorde, Audre,

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• The Bluest Eye

  Morrison, Toni

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• Their Eyes Were Watching God

  Hurston, Zora Neale

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