Oyinda Loves Books

Title: I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness
Author: Austin Channing Brown
Narrator: Austin Channing Brown
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

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This was a very insightful and enlightening book. I loved listening to the author, who doubled as the narrator, as she talked about her life and experiences. It was a great listening experience because she did a wonderful job of conveying her feelings and thoughts.
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It was surprisingly emotional and deeply personal. It started out with Austin’s thoughts and lessons about people’s reactions to finding out she was a black woman after only meeting her through her name. She took us through her career, early life, and different levels of interactions with white people in different spheres.
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It became very personal and I was very touched by some of the events recalled in this book. There were so many talking points and themes covered by the author. She talked about racism, racial identity, the complicity of white people, the tokenism and perfomativeness of the attempts of white people at diversity, being black in predominantly white spaces, passive and subtle racism, black incarceration, police brutality, and a host of other issues affecting black people in America.
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Overall, I really enjoyed this one and will definitely be rereading. I recommend this to everyone!

Blurb/Synopsis:

A REESE’S BOOK CLUB X HELLO SUNSHINE BOOK PICK

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

‘This book is my story about growing up in a Black girl’s body.’ From a leading voice on racial justice, an eye-opening account of growing up Black, Christian and female that exposes how white America’s love affair with ‘diversity’ so often falls short of its ideals.

Austin Channing Brown’s first encounter with a racialized America came at age seven, when she discovered her parents named her Austin to deceive future employers into thinking she was a white man. Growing up in majority-white schools and churches, Austin writes, ‘I had to learn what it means to love Blackness,’ a journey that led to a lifetime spent navigating America’s racial divide as a writer, speaker and expert helping organisations practice genuine inclusion.

In a time when nearly every institution (schools, churches, universities, businesses) claims to value diversity in its mission statement, Austin writes in breathtaking detail about her journey to self-worth and the pitfalls that kill our attempts at racial justice. Her stories bear witness to the complexity of America’s social fabric and invite the reader to confront apathy, recognise God’s ongoing work in the world and discover how Blackness-if we let it-can save us all.

‘Austin Channing Brown introduces herself as a master memoirist. This book will break open hearts and minds. It’s an example of how one woman can change the world by telling the truth about her life with unflinching, relentless courage’ GLENNON DOYLE

‘Most people say, “that books has legs”; I measure the impact of a book by how often I throw it across the room. [Austin’s book] has serious wings. It broke me open’