Race Talk And The Conspiracy Of Silence: Understanding And Facilitating Difficult Dialogues On Race

Tragic events of the past year, including the shooting deaths of unarmed Black men and the unwarranted charges of espionage against Chinese Americans have made the need for engaging in honest racial dialogue all the more pressing. Race Talk and the Conspiracy of Silence provides a concrete set of guidelines and solutions for engaging in honest racial dialogue to help us become agents of change.
Based on his extensive research on microaggressions, Dr. Sue exposes the explicit and hidden rules that govern race talk and uncover why conversations that touch on racial issues are so difficult. The individual and societal costs of our inability to converse honestly and openly about race are covered along with the benefits of holding successful conversations and discussions around race.Race Talk offers guidelines, techniques, and advice on how to navigate conversations and lead discussions on racial topics, resulting in improved communication, despelled stereotypes, decreased fear of differences, and increased compassion and empathy.

Derald Wing Sue, PhD, is Professor of Psychology and Education at Teachers College, Columbia University. He was?Co-Founder and first President of the Asian American Psychological Association, and past President of the?Society for the Psychological Study of Ethnic Minority Issues and the Society of Counseling Psychology. Dr Sue?serves on the Council of Elders for?Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology. His current research explores the manifestation, dynamics, and impact of racial, gender, and sexual orientation microaggressions. He currently applies this research to strategies for facilitating difficult?dialogs on race in the classroom and public forums and conducts training sessions across the U.S. and Canada to help institutions improve relations among community members.