White Awareness has been created out of a personal and professional struggle and is designed to help whites understand and come to grips with personal, cultural, and institutional racism. The author was the child of refugees from Hitler’s Germany. She was further influenced by the social movements in the United States during the 1960’s. She has a vision of equality and a commitment to combatting the pathology of racism. Her practical orientation makes her concerned with action rather than self-indulgent or energy-wasting guilt

Chapin, Helen G.

English

VCU Scholars Compass

40 ExpLorations in Ethnio Studies 
Historio Resouroes in Minnesota w i l l  c e r ta i n l y  se rve as a va l u ­
ab l e  resou rce to l end subs tance to f u t u r e  p l ans  fo r the Soc i ety . 
I t  a l so se rves a s  an  exce l l en t  ca t a l ogue of act i v i t i es wh i ch a re 
now i n  progres s . Th i s  repo r t  shou l d  be ava i l a b l e i n  eve ry schoo l 
and I i b ra ry i n  the S tate of M i nnesota for commun i ty and teache r use , 
and i t  a l so cou l d  se rve a s  a mode l  fo r other  s ta tes to rev i ew and 
p rev i ew the i r  own need s and so l u t i ons . 
- -Mr . C hr i s t i a n K .  S kj e rvo l d  
Equa L Eduoation Support Department 
Minneapo Lis PUbLio SohooLs 
J U D Y H .  KA T Z . WHITE A WARENESS : HANDBOOK FOR ANTI-RA CISM 
TRA ININ G .  N o r ma n : U n i v e r s i t y o f  O k l a h o m a  P r e s s , 1 9 7 8 . 
2 1 1 p p . , $ 1 2 . 9 5 h a r d , $ 4 . 9 5 p a p e r .  
White Awareness has been c reated out of  a persona l and p rofes ­
s i ona l s t rugg l e  and i s  des i gned to he l p  wh i tes  unde rs tand and come 
to g r i ps w i t h pe rsona l ,  cu l t u ra l , and i ns t i t u t i ona l rac i sm .  The 
au tho r  was the c h i l d of re fugees f rom H i t l e r ' s  Ge rmany . She was 
f u r t he r i n f l uenced by the soc i a l  movements  i n  the Un i ted S ta t es 
d u r i n g the 1 960 ' s .  She has a v i s i on of  equa l i ty and a comm i tment  
to comba t t i ng the pa tho l ogy of  rac i sm .  Her  prac t i ca l  o r i en ta t i on 
ma kes her  conce rned w i th  ac t i on ra ther  than s e l f- i nd u l gent  o r  energy­
wa s t i ng gu i l t .  
Ka t z ' s  bas i c  prem i se i s  tha t rac i sm i s  a p redom i nan t l y  "wh i te 
pro b l em" beca use i t  con ta i n s powe r and con t ro l  and because  wh i tes 
a re ove rwhe l m i ng l y i n  con t ro l  of our  soc i e ty . Th i s  powe r d i f fe ren­
t i a tes  rac i sm f rom prej ud i ce wh i c h i s  a human fa i l  i ng but one t ha t ,  
w i thout powe r ,  cannot sys tema t i ca l l y  opp res s o t he r s . Wh i t es need 
to be re-educated phys i ca l l y ,  soc i a l l y ,  and psycho l og i ca l l y  i n  order  
to be freed from rac i sm among t hemse l ves . 
The Handbook ' s  t ra i n i ng p rog ram i s  a s ta r t i ng p l ace and not an  
end  i n  i t se l f .  The  program i s  f rom t heo ry to  t ra i n i ng to pract i ce ,  
and i s  p r i ma r i l y des i gned fo r counse l o rs , educa to r s , teache r s , and 
agen ts  of change . The pa r t i c i pant  beg i n s by de f i n i ng concept s  of 
b i a s ,  b i go t ry ,  prej ud i c e ,  and rac i sm ,  then exam i n es rac i sm i n  the 
con text of such a reas a s  educa t i on , hea l th s e rv i ces , hou s i ng ,  po l i ­
t i cs , re i i g i on , econom i c s , a e s t he t i c s ,  and l angua g e .  I n  t h e  p ro­
cess one i den t i f i e s  and a r t i cu l a tes pe rsona l feel i n gs , then def i nes 
ways i n  wh i ch one ' s  a t t i tudes and behav i o r  a re rep resen t a t i ve of 
and ref l ect soc i e ty . F i na l l y ,  one a r r i ves at spec i f i c  s t rateg i es 
to use aga i n s t  rac i sm .  The text i nc l udes exerc i ses  and i n s t ruct i ons , 
i dent i f i a b l e  goa l s ,  I i s t s  of  ma ter i a l s  needed , and notes to fac i l  i ­
tato r s . The exerc i ses  a r e  des i gned to b rea k down the pa r t i c i pa n t s ' 
res i s tance to them by the i r  l ea rn i n g the benef i t s to be ga i ned f rom 
be i n g I i be ra ted f rom rac i sm .  Mos t  exerc i ses  focus  on b l ac k-wh i t e 
Book Reviews 4 1  
re l a t ionsh i ps ,  b u t  some a re a p p l  i ca b l e t o  the  Women ' s  Moveme n t  and 
to Na t i ve Ame r i can  and other  "Th i rd Wo r l d " g roups . One i ma g i na t i ve 
exerc i se i s  fo r pa rt i c i pa n t s  to des i gn a rac i s t commun i ty of t he i r  
own . There a re s i mu l a t i o n  games , too , 1 i ke t he c i rc l e  b reak- i n  
i n  wh i ch outs i de r s  and i n s i ders  l ea rn and demon s t ra te how rac i sm 
opera tes . Pa r t i c i pa n t s  a re encou raged to express  t he i r fee l i ngs  and 
ana l yze the dynam i c s  o f  each s i t ua t i on .  The book p rov i des , bes i des 
i ts �wn ma te r i a l , supp l emen ta l 1 i s t s  o f  a pprop r i a te f i l ms ,  tapes , 
and l i tera t u re to u s e  i n  conj unc t i on w i t h  the  t ra i n i n g ,  and  a b i b-
1 i ogra phy . 
The p rog ram can be a nd ha s been ada p t ed to va r i ou s  fo rma t s , 
f rom a t h ree hou r i n t roductory sess i on ,  to a n  e i g h t  hou r day , o r  to 
a s emes ter  l ong  cou rse . But  the  empha s i s  i s  on a sys tema t i c  a p p roach 
and an obj ec t i ve mea s u reme n t  of  resu l ts .  Ka tz  po i n t s  to resea rch 
tha t s hows pos i t i ve c ha nges in t he a t t i tude  and behav i o r  of  t hose  
who have pa rt i c i pa ted and  t hen  become a c t i ve l y  enga ged i n  d�ve l op i ng 
new schoo l c u r r i cu l u m ,  fo r examp l e , fo r i n  expa nd i n g gove rnance i n  
a n  o rgan i za t i on ,  o r  i n  exam i n i ng t he i r  i ns t i t u t i on ' s  c r i t e r i a  for  
h i r i ng .  
The Handbook ha s a n  obv i ou s  wea knes s . Wh i l e Ka tz  i s  r i gh t  to 
go beyond the i nd i v i dua l i n  o rd e r  to a rouse g roups  to a c t i on ,  she  
does so by l ean i ng heav i l y  and  s i mp l  i s t i ca l l y  on a concept of  
" wh i te cu l tu re" . The au thor  adama n t l y  d i sca rds  a n y  re l i a nce on 
ethn i c  i den t i f i ca t i on beca us e ,  she say s , t h i s  i s  a way of deny i n g 
respons i b i l i ty fo r perpetua t i ng the  rac i s t sys tem . By i n s i s t i n g 
that l i the  a b i l  i ty to ma ke i t  i n  t h e  sys tem i s  d ependen t on one ' s  
co l or ,  not one ' s  ethn i c  backg round  o r  a b i  1 i t i es "  ( p .  1 3] ) , s h e  has 
ove r l ooked the  rema r ka b l e  s ucce s s  of  As i an Ame r i ca n s , to name j us t  
one g roup ( th e re a r e  others ) , who have r i sen out  o f  co l o r  prej ud i ce 
a t  g rea t sac r i f i ce ,  b u t  who a re now a t  t h e  top of the  econom i c  
l adder , hav i n g ach i eved i n  1 97 7  a fam i l y  i ncome 1 32%  ove r the  na­
t i ona l avera g e .  One ques t i ons , too , how c l ose l y  the  poor and wh i te ,  
l i ke Appa l ach i a n s , s ha re a "cu l tu re"  o r  "commun i ty" w i th C h i cago 
Po l i sh Ame r i cans  or San F ranc i sco m i dd l e-c l a s s  Greek Ame r i ca n s , 
o r  j us t  how respons i b l e  the  poor and wh i te a re for rac i sm .  
The s t rengths , however ,  o f  White Awareness a re t hose  men t i oned 
and , too , t ha t  i t  i s  l uc i d l y  wr i t ten , c l ea r l y  o rgan i zed , and  u n ­
preten t i ous . The Handbook can he l p  any of u s  c l a r i fy o u r  persona l 
a t t i tudes a s  we l l a s  the  soc i a l  sources o f  t hose fee l i n gs . Thus  
we a r e  p rov i ded w i t h  a resou rce t ha t  con t r i bu tes to  ou r know l edge 
of how rac i sm wor ks and i nvo l ves u s  i n  comba t t i n g  i t .  
- - H e l en G .  Chap i n  
Hawaii Pacific Co l lege� Hono lulu 


[Review of] Judy H. Katz. White Awareness: Handbook for Anti-Racism Training

40 ExpLorations in Ethnio Studies Historio Resouroes in Minnesota w i l l  c e r ta i n l y  se rve as a va l u ­ab l e  resou rce to l end subs tance to f u t u r e  p l ans  fo r the Soc i ety . I t  a l so se rves a s  an  exce l l en t  ca t a l ogue of act i v i t i es wh i ch a re now i n  progres s . Th i s  repo r t  shou l d  be ava i l a b l e i n  eve ry schoo l and I i b ra ry i n  the S tate of M i nnesota for commun i ty and teache r use , and i t  a l so cou l d  se rve a s  a mode l  fo r other  s ta tes to rev i ew and p rev i ew the i r  own need s and so l u t i ons . - -Mr . C hr i s t i a n K .  S kj e rvo l d  Equa L Eduoation Support Department Minneapo Lis PUbLio SohooLs J U D Y H .  KA T Z . WHITE A WARENESS : HANDBOOK FOR ANTI-RA CISM TRA ININ G .  N o r ma n : U n i v e r s i t y o f  O k l a h o m a  P r e s s , 1 9 7 8 . 2 1 1 p p . , $ 1 2 . 9 5 h a r d , $ 4 . 9 5 p a p e r .  White Awareness has been c reated out of  a persona l and p rofes ­s i ona l s t rugg l e  and i s  des i gned to he l p  wh i tes  unde rs tand and come to g r i ps w i t h pe rsona l ,  cu l t u ra l , and i ns t i t u t i ona l rac i sm .  The au tho r  was the c h i l d of re fugees f rom H i t l e r ' s  Ge rmany . She was f u r t he r i n f l uenced by the soc i a l  movements  i n  the Un i ted S ta t es d u r i n g the 1 960 ' s .  She has a v i s i on of  equa l i ty and a comm i tment  to comba t t i ng the pa tho l ogy of  rac i sm .  Her  prac t i ca l  o r i en ta t i on ma kes her  conce rned w i th  ac t i on ra ther  than s e l f- i nd u l gent  o r  energy­wa s t i ng gu i l t .  Ka t z ' s  bas i c  prem i se i s  tha t rac i sm i s  a p redom i nan t l y  "wh i te pro b l em" beca use i t  con ta i n s powe r and con t ro l  and because  wh i tes a re ove rwhe l m i ng l y i n  con t ro l  of our  soc i e ty . Th i s  powe r d i f fe ren­t i a tes  rac i sm f rom prej ud i ce wh i c h i s  a human fa i l  i ng but one t ha t ,  w i thout powe r ,  cannot sys tema t i ca l l y  opp res s o t he r s . Wh i t es need to be re-educated phys i ca l l y ,  soc i a l l y ,  and psycho l og i ca l l y  i n  order  to be freed from rac i sm among t hemse l ves . The Handbook ' s  t ra i n i ng p rog ram i s  a s ta r t i ng p l ace and not an  end  i n  i t se l f .  The  program i s  f rom t heo ry to  t ra i n i ng to pract i ce ,  and i s  p r i ma r i l y des i gned fo r counse l o rs , educa to r s , teache r s , and agen ts  of change . The pa r t i c i pant  beg i n s by de f i n i ng concept s  of b i a s ,  b i go t ry ,  prej ud i c e ,  and rac i sm ,  then exam i n es rac i sm i n  the con text of such a reas a s  educa t i on , hea l th s e rv i ces , hou s i ng ,  po l i ­t i cs , re i i g i on , econom i c s , a e s t he t i c s ,  and l angua g e .  I n  t h e  p ro­cess one i den t i f i e s  and a r t i cu l a tes pe rsona l feel i n gs , then def i nes ways i n  wh i ch one ' s  a t t i tudes and behav i o r  a re rep resen t a t i ve of and ref l ect soc i e ty . F i na l l y ,  one a r r i ves at spec i f i c  s t rateg i es to use aga i n s t  rac i sm .  The text i nc l udes exerc i ses  and i n s t ruct i ons , i dent i f i a b l e  goa l s ,  I i s t s  of  ma ter i a l s  needed , and notes to fac i l  i ­tato r s . The exerc i ses  a r e  des i gned to b rea k down the pa r t i c i pa n t s ' res i s tance to them by the i r  l ea rn i n g the benef i t s to be ga i ned f rom be i n g I i be ra ted f rom rac i sm .  Mos t  exerc i ses  focus  on b l ac k-wh i t e Book Reviews 4 1  re l a t ionsh i ps ,  b u t  some a re a p p l  i ca b l e t o  the  Women ' s  Moveme n t  and to Na t i ve Ame r i can  and other  "Th i rd Wo r l d " g roups . One i ma g i na t i ve exerc i se i s  fo r pa rt i c i pa n t s  to des i gn a rac i s t commun i ty of t he i r  own . There a re s i mu l a t i o n  games , too , 1 i ke t he c i rc l e  b reak- i n  i n  wh i ch outs i de r s  and i n s i ders  l ea rn and demon s t ra te how rac i sm opera tes . Pa r t i c i pa n t s  a re encou raged to express  t he i r fee l i ngs  and ana l yze the dynam i c s  o f  each s i t ua t i on .  The book p rov i des , bes i des i ts �wn ma te r i a l , supp l emen ta l 1 i s t s  o f  a pprop r i a te f i l ms ,  tapes , and l i tera t u re to u s e  i n  conj unc t i on w i t h  the  t ra i n i n g ,  and  a b i b-1 i ogra phy . The p rog ram can be a nd ha s been ada p t ed to va r i ou s  fo rma t s , f rom a t h ree hou r i n t roductory sess i on ,  to a n  e i g h t  hou r day , o r  to a s emes ter  l ong  cou rse . But  the  empha s i s  i s  on a sys tema t i c  a p p roach and an obj ec t i ve mea s u reme n t  of  resu l ts .  Ka tz  po i n t s  to resea rch tha t s hows pos i t i ve c ha nges in t he a t t i tude  and behav i o r  of  t hose  who have pa rt i c i pa ted and  t hen  become a c t i ve l y  enga ged i n  d�ve l op i ng new schoo l c u r r i cu l u m ,  fo r examp l e , fo r i n  expa nd i n g gove rnance i n  a n  o rgan i za t i on ,  o r  i n  exam i n i ng t he i r  i ns t i t u t i on ' s  c r i t e r i a  for  h i r i ng .  The Handbook ha s a n  obv i ou s  wea knes s . Wh i l e Ka tz  i s  r i gh t  to go beyond the i nd i v i dua l i n  o rd e r  to a rouse g roups  to a c t i on ,  she  does so by l ean i ng heav i l y  and  s i mp l  i s t i ca l l y  on a concept of  " wh i te cu l tu re" . The au thor  adama n t l y  d i sca rds  a n y  re l i a nce on ethn i c  i den t i f i ca t i on beca us e ,  she say s , t h i s  i s  a way of deny i n g respons i b i l i ty fo r perpetua t i ng the  rac i s t sys tem . By i n s i s t i n g that l i the  a b i l  i ty to ma ke i t  i n  t h e  sys tem i s  d ependen t on one ' s  co l or ,  not one ' s  ethn i c  backg round  o r  a b i  1 i t i es "  ( p .  1 3] ) , s h e  has ove r l ooked the  rema r ka b l e  s ucce s s  of  As i an Ame r i ca n s , to name j us t  one g roup ( th e re a r e  others ) , who have r i sen out  o f  co l o r  prej ud i ce a t  g rea t sac r i f i ce ,  b u t  who a re now a t  t h e  top of the  econom i c  l adder , hav i n g ach i eved i n  1 97 7  a fam i l y  i ncome 1 32%  ove r the  na­t i ona l avera g e .  One ques t i ons , too , how c l ose l y  the  poor and wh i te ,  l i ke Appa l ach i a n s , s ha re a "cu l tu re"  o r  "commun i ty" w i th C h i cago Po l i sh Ame r i cans  or San F ranc i sco m i dd l e-c l a s s  Greek Ame r i ca n s , o r  j us t  how respons i b l e  the  poor and wh i te a re for rac i sm .  The s t rengths , however ,  o f  White Awareness a re t hose  men t i oned and , too , t ha t  i t  i s  l uc i d l y  wr i t ten , c l ea r l y  o rgan i zed , and  u n ­preten t i ous . The Handbook can he l p  any of u s  c l a r i fy o u r  persona l a t t i tudes a s  we l l a s  the  soc i a l  sources o f  t hose fee l i n gs . Thus  we a r e  p rov i ded w i t h  a resou rce t ha t  con t r i bu tes to  ou r know l edge of how rac i sm wor ks and i nvo l ves u s  i n  comba t t i n g  i t .  - - H e l en G .  Chap i n  Hawaii Pacific Co l lege� Hono lulu 

https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1081&amp;context=ees

[Review of] Judy H. Katz. White Awareness: Handbook for Anti-Racism Training

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