Waking Up White Regional Read

Waking Up White Regional Read, Summer 2021*

Beginning Summer 2021*, the Waking Up White Regional Read, a collaboration between the La Crosse Public Library and the Waking Up White Regional Community Learning Collaborative, invites the La Crosse regional community to read Debby Irving’s best selling book, Waking Up White. Join discussions about the book and related themes, engaging in conversations about ways to create a more welcoming and inclusive multicultural community.

Don't wait until 2021 to start reading! Check out this amazing bibliography of related content, available via the La Crosse Public Library,
put together by Maria Hertel and Jenny DeRocher.

*Final dates will be impacted by COVID-19 and state/health dept. regulations. Check this website for the most updated information.

Waking Up White Regional Read

Waking Up White Regional Read
1. Theme-based free public presentations with associated Q&A
2. "Book Chat Meet Ups": Small group facilitated discussions of WUW
3. Waking Up White book availability:

100 paper and 6 audio available through Winding Rivers Library System
20 book kits available through the libraries to be used for people/organizations hosting book discussions
700 free books distributed throughout the community (Sites TBA)

Stay tuned for the Waking Up White Regional Read Events Calendar!

Waking Up White Blog - Alice Benson

Why use Waking Up White for the Regional Read?
In 2017, a reading and discussions of the book Waking Up White profoundly influenced a small group of white people in La Crosse, WI. The text was a provocative call to action which eventually resulted in the formation of the La Crosse Waking Up White Collaborative and its multi-year anti-racism community work.
The Collaborative is sometimes asked why they chose a book that centers on a white woman’s experience when there are so many other books by BIPOC authors who are, arguably, more well versed on the topics of race and racism. This book was selected for several reasons, the most compelling of which are outlined below:

The book is intended and written for white people “who are beginning their journey or don’t even know they have a journey to take” (People, Hodges, Ph.D.). Because the La Crosse community is 91% white and the surrounding communities are even “whiter”, this relatable book is a way to invite our residents to learn about how racism lives in our homes, communities, and nation. The common read across multiple areas open accessibility and provides an energized opportunity for engagement. This book speaks to “good white people” who do not fully see or understand how they contribute to racism. “She wrote the book to address and expose explicit, implicit and all other latent biases and systemic racial practices of whites by whites who enjoyed the benefits of being white” (Ferguson, 2020).”
The book contains both historical research and a compelling personal story of one white woman’s journey of discovering whiteness and understanding its impacts on people of color. “Debby Irving comes from a [WASP] family and has a history that is the ultimate representation of white superiority. As a white person of privilege, who can trace her heritage back as far as the first colonists, she uses these advantages in her book to appeal to her contemporaries” (Ferguson, 2020).
This book is just a step on the journey and needs to be followed by continued self-learning and reflection with reading, watching, and listening to the works and voices of people of color. Importantly it is a call to action to change the systems of white dominance and privilege and in doing so make the La Crosse area a Healthier Multicultural Community.
The book is ideal for group reads with its short chapters and self-reflecting questions lending to engaging discussions which can be done at the grassroots level with family, friends, colleagues, at churches, places of work, and schools.

Books that Center the Experiences of Persons of Color:

“White Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide” by Carol Anderson
“White by Law” by Ian Haney Lopez
“So You Want to Talk About Race” by Ijeoma Oluo
“Between the World and Me” by Ta-Nehisi Coates
"How to be an Antiracist" by Ibram X. Kendi

Questions? Email laxwakingupwhite@gmail.com

About Waking Up White

Waking Up White by Debby Irving
From the author's bio ...
Waking Up White is the book Debby Irving wishes someone had handed her decades ago. By sharing her sometimes cringe-worthy struggle to understand racism and racial tensions, she offers a fresh perspective on bias, stereotypes, manners, and tolerance. As she unpacks her own long-held beliefs about colorblindness, being a good person, and wanting to help people of color, she reveals how each of these well-intentioned mindsets actually perpetuated her ill-conceived ideas about race. She also explains why and how she’s changed the way she talks about racism, works in racially mixed groups, and understands the racial justice movement as a whole. More on Debby Irving.

“Waking Up White is engaging, challenging, and action-oriented! It’s a must read for anyone exploring issues of racism, power, privilege, and leadership.” – Eddie Moore, Jr., PhD, Founder, White Privilege Conference

Waking up White Regional Read Sponsors

Wisconsin Humanities Council GrantBooks generously funded, in part, by a grant from the Wisconsin Humanities Council, with funds from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this project do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment of the Humanities. The Wisconsin Humanities Council supports and creates programs that use history, culture, and discussion to strengthen community life for everyone in Wisconsin.