To Understand Race in America

Sue Kiefer Hammersmith is a published author, activist, and retired university president. She coauthored the ground-breaking Kinsey Institute study Sexual Preference: Its Development in Men and Women, the textbook The Solution of Social Problems: Five Perspectives, 2nd edition, and an antiracism education curriculum Recognizing and Addressing the Dominant Racial Frame. Hammersmith was a tenured faculty member at Indiana University-Indianapolis, University College Dean at Ball State University, Arts and Sciences Dean at Ferris State University, Provost and Chief Operating Officer at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, and President of Minnesota’s Metropolitan State University. She has appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show, Good Morning America!, the Today Show, and numerous local, national, and international radio and TV shows.Bob-e Simpson Epps is a senior executive, change agent, and strategist. She was awarded a Point of Light Award by President Ronald Reagan for her pioneering work supporting women’s economic independence. She is the founder and CEO of BASE Consulting, specializing in trauma, Diversity/Equity/Inclusion/Accessibility (DEIA) purpose coaching, and relational leadership. She is also Chief People & Culture Officer, People Serving People. She is the author of Things My Daddy and ‘Nim Taught Me…: 30 sayins’ that shaped a culture, a book of African American folk wisdom. She is an expert in childhood trauma and historical trauma. She has worked extensively with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, state and local governments, and nonprofits working to address historical trauma, health care, and resilience in African American and Indigenous American communities.

As history repeats itself, the writers of “To Understand Race in America” illuminate the reality of “living within the veil” and its profound social, cultural, political, and spiritual consequences. Our nation continues to underestimate the harmful effects of truth distortion and how denying historical truths cripples everyone's future well-being. Dorothy Simpson Taylor, Founder, Sister Soldier NetworkTo Understand Race in America: Start Here lives up to its title, a sweeping, accessible foundation for classrooms and dialogue circles. It synthesizes the history, ideologies, and impacts shaping today’s national conversations on inclusion and exclusion. We will use it as a core text in our ACT (ASDIC) antiracism dialogues. Okogyeamon, Co-founder, Antiracism Community of TransformationTo Understand Race in America: Start Here lays bare the enduring shadow of America’s past in sharp, honest clarity, arming us with the truth that is the only path toward building an authentic democracy. By boldly accepting these facts, we can translate them into inspired action. Antonia Felix, New York Times Bestselling AuthorAmerica’s racial system is no longer sustainable. It traumatizes all Americans. To Understand Race in America: Start Here is a groundbreaking guide to the hidden history, theory, and everyday practice of race and white supremacy in the United States. This landmark study is a wake-up call to all Americans.Karen Paul, Florida International UniversityTo Understand Race in America: Start Here offers a clear, engaging exploration of the history and structure of white supremacy in the United States. With rich visuals and built-in teaching tools, it strongly supports the Jim Crow Museum's educational work.David Pilgrim, Vice President, Ferris State UniversityThis book lays a foundation for understanding the racialized structures in the US that we are all struggling to grapple with. The book provides a deep historical engagement with America’s white supremacist patriarchy that is both illuminating and important. It surveys the collateral damage that America's historic white patriarchy wreaks on everyone in the country. Uniquely and importantly, the book unpacks the many problems that race presents around education and health care, which are critical social institutions for society. This is a significant and groundbreaking book with wide ramifications.Philip Ewell, Hunter College, and author of On Music Theory, and Making Music More Welcoming for Everyone

• Introduction 1. The Illusion of Race 2. White Culture 3. Indigenous American Civilizations 4. Christianity, Capitalism, and American Colonialism 5. Creating a New “White Race” 6. African Civilization and Resilience 7. The Whitening of North America (1776-1900) 8. American Genocide 9. Historical Trauma 10. Creating America’s White Middle Class (1800-2000) 11. White Rage (1865-1965) 12. The “Scientific Racism” Movement (1850-1950) 13. African Americans Change the Face of America (1900-2000) 14. Tackling Segregation in Education and Health Care (1955-2000) 15. white power (1955-2025) 16. Education, Race, and the American Dream