Summer Book Club: Join us for Caste

On July 8, we’ll start our review and discussion of Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson. The section to focus on for this discussion is the opening through Part One: Toxins in the Permafrost and Heat Rising All Around (ending on page 35). 

As you are reading, prepare for the discussion by considering the following questions:

1. Wilkerson begins the book with an image of one lone dissenter amidst a crowd of Germans giving the Nazi salute. What would it mean—and what would it take—to be this man today?
2. At the beginning of Caste, author Isabel Wilkerson compares American racial hierarchy to a dormant Siberian virus. What are the strengths of this metaphor? How does this comparison help combat the pervasive myth that racism has been eradicated in America?
3. Wilkerson uses many different metaphors to explain and help us visualize the concept of the American caste system: the bones inside a body, the beams inside a house, even the computer program in the 1999 film The Matrix. Which of these metaphors helped the concept click for you? Why was it successful? What did you think of the analogy of America being like an old house built on unstable ground with issues lurking, just hidden from sight?
4. What are some of the elements required for a caste system to succeed? Do you agree with Wilkerson’s argument that the US has a racial caste system? Why or why not? What makes it similar or different to India’s caste system?
5. You could argue that every society in the history of the world has some form of social hierarchy, even if not as brutal and damaging as the American system of chattel slavery, or as rigid and pervasive as the Indian caste system. Is hierarchy inevitable? Can you think of any exceptions?
6. What did you think of Wilkerson’s definitions of casteism vs racism? Do you like this concept of two definitions rather than simply calling both racism? Do you think there’s a danger in re-labeling / softening the emotive term “racism” that we sidestep it / absolve ourselves of it?

Visit the VP Finance site for the full schedule of our discussions and suggested questions: https://vpfinance.virginia.edu/resources-dei

If you are unable to read the book (or haven’t started), please still join us. You will still be able to contribute to and learn from the discussions without reading it. We really hope you will join us for this discussion, and please share the invitation with another UVA colleagues. These sessions are open to anyone who is interested!

The zoom link for all of the discussions is: https://virginia.zoom.us/j/95163051737?pwd=TlZ0WVF4VUl4cnpyZ3dTRVl6U2w3dz09. If you have any questions regarding the Sprint discussions, please contact Patty Marbury or ToShun Campbell.