The week of June 6, 2020 was remembering that the fight for Black liberation and racial justice has created the pathway to equality for all of us. And today more than ever, it requires the support of all of us. You may hear a lot these days about how white people can step up — and they should! — but let’s not forget the responsibility of Asian, Latinx, Jewish, Muslim and every other type of Mash-Up American to fight for racial justice and equity for all. We stand together, always.

So this week: A Mash-Up solidarity reading list to deepen our understanding and push us forward in our fight for equity. We’ve provided Bookshop listings below, or you can do us one better: Support your favorite local Black-owned bookstore.

If you need more, there’s an excellent starter kit on Black Lives Matter here. And if you want to share these with your non-English speaking relatives? YOU GO, FAM. The translators are doing the work here and here. Let’s grow our brains together.

The Next American Revolution: Sustainable Activism For The Twenty-First Century
BY GRACE LEE BOGGS, SCOTT KURASHIGE

Grace Lee Boggs, drawing from seven decades of activist experience, assessed our current crisis to redefine “revolution” for our times. Her book is a manifesto for creating alternative modes of work, politics, and human interaction that will collectively constitute the next American Revolution. Rest in power, Grace.

An African American And Latinx History Of The United States
BY PAUL ORTIZ

Spanning more than two hundred years and told from the interconnected vantage points of Latinx, African American, and Indigenous voices, this book transforms US history into one of the working class organizing against imperialism, and offers a way forward in the continued struggle for universal civil rights.

This Bridge Called My Back: Writings By Radical Women Of Color
BY CHERRÍE MORAGA, GLORIA ANZALDÚA

Originally released in 1981, this book explores “the complex confluence of identities—race, class, gender, and sexuality—systemic to women of color oppression and liberation.” Through personal essays, criticism, interviews, testimonials, poetry, visual art, and new contributions, it continues to reflect an evolving definition of feminism.

Where Is Your Body?: And Other Essays On Race, Gender, And The Law
BY MARI J MATSUDA

Featuring essays such as “We Will Not Be Used: Are Asian-Americans the Racial Bourgeoisie?” Mari J. Matsuda offers a strikingly insightful look at how our collective experiences of race, class, and gender inform our understanding of law and shape our vision of a more just society. A Mash-Up HQ fave.

Freedom Is A Constant Struggle: Ferguson, Palestine, And The Foundations Of A Movement
BY ANGELA Y DAVIS

In these newly collected essays, interviews, and speeches, world-renowned activist and scholar Angela Y. Davis illuminates the connections between struggles against state violence and oppression throughout history and around the world.

Facing a world of outrageous injustice, Davis challenges us to imagine and build the movement for human liberation. And in doing so, she reminds us that “Freedom is a constant struggle.” 

The Karma Of Brown Folk
BY VIJAY PRASHAD

Vijay Prashad locates the birth of the “model minority” myth, placing it firmly in the context of reaction to the struggle for Black Liberation. Ultimately, Prashad writes not just about South Asians in America but about America itself. He explores the place of collective struggle and multiracial alliances in the transformation of self and community-in short, how Americans define themselves.

Jews Of Color And The Policing Of White Space
BY REBECCA PIERCE

From casual comments about not “looking Jewish,” to being racially profiled by synagogue security, most Jews of color have at least one story like this, sometimes many. These experiences stem from the ubiquitous assumption that only white people belong in Jewish spaces — that is, that American Jewish spaces are in fact part of the greater American “white space.”

The Fire Next Time
BY JAMES BALDWIN

From 1963 to 2020. James Baldwin’s writing galvanized the nation and gave passionate voice to the emerging civil rights movement. Chronicling his early life in Harlem, Baldwin provides a disturbing examination of the consequences of racial injustice that continues to profoundly affect and resonate.

The Fire This Time: A New Generation Speaks About Race
BY JESMYN WARD

Jesmyn Ward and some of the most important voices of our generation gather to form an indispensable anthology, shine a light on the darkest corners of our history, wrestle with our current predicament, and imagine a better future. Baldwin’s “fire next time” is now upon us.