Heather McGhee, author of The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together, believes that all people, of all ages and all backgrounds, need to rethink their attitude toward race and strive together to create opportunities that benefit everyone.
This book, adapted for young readers, is a call to action. McGhee examines how damaging racism is, not only to people of color but also to white people. She offers hope and real solutions so we can all prosper. An expert in economic policy, McGhee draws lessons from her travels around the country talking to everyday people fighting for a more just and inclusive society.
The people she meets prove how the stories we tell ourselves about race and belonging influence the policies that determine our shared economic future. [Adapted from publisher’s description.]
ISBN: 9780593562628 | Delacorte Press
Lessons
These Zinn Education Project lessons can help students explore issues in selected chapters from The Sum of Us. They are aligned to the topics and themes in the respective chapters. Share a story if you use any of them and we’ll send you books in appreciation.
Classroom Story
My school has a Drop Everything and Read (DEAR) time every week. Having a classroom set of The Sum of Us has allowed me to share the story with the whole class. We are having open discussion on the real issues around racism. This book is giving us opportunities to talk about the real issues students are facing. The students were leery of the book at first but we are reading it in small increments and then having discussions about what we read. Many are starting to pay attention intently now and are being productive in the discussion, too.
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