Robin Miles

Isabel Wilkerson

The Origins of Our Discontents

Caste

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - OPRAH'S BOOK CLUB PICK - The Pulitzer Prize-winning, bestselling author of The Warmth of Other Suns examines the unspoken caste system that has shaped America and shows how our lives today are still defined by a hierarchy of human divisions. "An instant American classic."--Dwight Garner, The New York Times "As we go about our daily lives, caste is the wordless usher in a darkened theater, flashlight cast down in the aisles, guiding us to our assigned seats for a performance. The hierarchy of caste is not about feelings or morality. It is about power--which groups have it and which do not." In this brilliant book, Isabel Wilkerson gives us a masterful portrait of an unseen phenomenon in America as she explores, through an immersive, deeply researched narrative and stories about real people, how America today and throughout its history has been shaped by a hidden caste system, a rigid hierarchy of human rankings. Beyond race, class, or other factors, there is a powerful caste system that influences people's lives and behavior and the nation's fate. Linking the caste systems of America, India, and Nazi Germany, Wilkerson explores eight pillars that underlie caste systems across civilizations, including divine will, bloodlines, stigma, and more. Using riveting stories about people--including Martin Luther King, Jr., baseball's Satchel Paige, a single father and his toddler son, Wilkerson herself, and many others--she shows the ways that the insidious undertow of caste is experienced every day. She documents how the Nazis studied the racial systems in America to plan their out-cast of the Jews; she discusses why the cruel logic of caste requires that there be a bottom rung for those in the middle to measure themselves against; she writes about the surprising health costs of caste, in depression and life expectancy, and the effects of this hierarchy on our culture and politics. Finally, she points forward to ways America can move beyond the artificial and destructive separations of human divisions, toward hope in our common humanity. Beautifully written, original, and revealing, Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents is an eye-opening story of people and history, and a reexamination of what lies under the surface of ordinary lives and of American life today.

ame 

A caste system persists in part because we, each and every one of us, allow it to exist in large and small ways, in our everyday actions, in how we elevate or demean, embrace or exclude, on the basis of the meaning attached to peoples physical traits. If enough people buy into the lie of natural hierarchy, then it becomes the truth or is assumed to be. Once awakened, we then have a choice. We can be born to the dominant caste but choose not to dominate. We can be born to a subordinated caste but resist the box others force upon us. And all of us can sharpen our powers of discernment to see past the exter- nal and to value the character of a person rather than demean those who are already marginalized or worship those born to false pedestals. We need not bristle when those deemed subordinate break free, but rejoice that here may be one more human being who can add their true strengths to humanity.

Kimmy Hobden

Whatever is lurking will fester whether you choose to look or not. Ignorance is no protection from the consequences of inaction. Whatever you are wishing away will gnaw at you until you gather the courage to face what you would rather not see.

The country was losing the capacity to be shocked; the unfathomable became just another part of one's day.

 "This is not America," or "I don't recognize my country," or "This is not who we are." Except that this was and is our country and this was and is who we are, whether we have known or recognized it or not.

kristie alexis

John Manoogian III

Magisterial. Recommended.

1. Exhaustively and vividly details the past and present injustices visited upon black Americans, and by way of second-order effects, all Americans.

2. Uses the much older Indian caste system as a parallel example of a fixed, immutable, heritable, “divinely ordained”, violent, terrorizing system of power striation, exclusion, economic, spiritual, and political oppression that mirrors the American legacy of slavery in ways that will unsettle many Americans.

3. Presents comparisons between Nazi eugenics and the southern slave trade and its downstream effects on both descendants of slavery and on American society as a whole. Offers examples where the Nazis used the American slavers’ rules and laws as templates for the Nazi Holocaust, and in at least one instance, looked at the American rules for oppression as TOO STRONG, the Nazis instead choosing a more “inclusive” definition of Aryan than the American slavers’ “one drop” rule.

4. Reframes and integrates common mental models about radicalized injustice in America. The author very thoroughly paints a picture of America’s racialized caste system as being (only) incidentally about “race”, but rather more fundamentally grounded in divide-and-conquer power consolidation processes — deliberate systems of economic control that evolved repeatedly in order to maintain their efficiency through different means. 

5. Offers comparisons between the German model of reconciliation — destruction and paving over of Nazi monuments or historic sites, the construction of highly visible monuments in high traffic areas, reparations — to the relatively tepid American reconciliation and apologia for slavery — to the ongoing Indian caste struggles of the Dalits (often called “The Untouchables”).

Definitely a hearty, and emotionally heavy, read. Some people are born to write — a certain subject, focus, book; and the author is one such example. Powerful, well reasoned, deeply thorough, thought provoking, inspiring, unsettling, and emotional. 

Good books to read after this one would be DYING OF WHITENESS, THE CONDEMNATION OF BLACKNESS, and THE SUM OF US.

vanessa

The best book I’ve read this year. My hope is that this eventually makes its way onto required reading lists in high schools across the country.

Erin Darlyn

This book made me weep. It is well-researched, poignant, thought-provoking, gut-wrenching and eye-opening, and I commend Ms. Wilkerson for completing the monumental task of writing it. I learned a lot. Every American needs to read it.

Jazz

Desire JoRay

This is a book that everyone should have to read. The contrast between how the United States handles our horrible history compared to Germany is infuriating and heartbreaking.

Michael Springer

Things I'd like to remember, but will probably forget every time they'd be a useful point to bring up in a conversation: 

1. Affirmative Action has always existed in the USA, but it has only been called Affirmative Action when it benefits minorities. In recent years, redlining has gotten a lot of attention, and this is an obvious example. Bank lending practices much more recently have also continued this trend of ensuring that Black families are fighting an uphill battle for the exact same things White families can get cheaper and more easily. 

Another example Wilkerson points out is the New Deal itself, which at the behest of racist southern lawmakers, did not afford the same benefits to those working in mostly-minority careers, ruling them out from all the benefits of these policies. 

2. Before getting too excited about how great the USA is, remember The Nazis literally studied the USA and its codified approach to racism when developing their party's platform. They found the USA inspiring. Not to mention the fact that, early on, they thought the USA was maybe a bit too extreme for their tastes, and had certain areas they thought we had gone too far. 

3. A caste system by any other name is still a caste system. We have a caste system in the USA. Look at how financially (and sometimes otherwise) insecure White people responded to the Obama presidency. Look at the immediate backlash to "Make America great again" by cracking down on minority groups, and how those message resonated with so many White people, especially men. 

You can try to write racism off as something distinct or separate, but people are afraid they are losing social capital when they see people from certain artificially constructed social groups achieve more success than they have. This can be both racism and also illustrate the caste system in this country.

Keven Wang

Zoe Stricker

(Unsurprisingly) as brilliant as it was well-written. Another piece of required reading from Wilkerson, the best non fiction writer I am aware of.

Midori Kobayashi

4.5/5 stars

i will revisit this one again and again. too much information. alot to think about.

Ben Jenkins

Maddie

Incredibly well written. Wilkerson’s comparisons to the caste systems in India and WWII Germany provide abundant examples and context to understand the caste system in the US. Should be required reading.

Sierra Nguyen

One of the most important books that I have read this year.

The closing paragraph is definitely something I will keep in my heart forever:

“In a world without caste, being male or female, light or dark, immigrant or native-born, would have no bearing on what anyone was perceived as being capable of. In a world without caste, we would all be invested in the well-being of others in our species if only for our own survival, and recognize that we are in need of one another more than we have been led to believe. We would join forces with indigenous people around the world raising the alarm as fires rage and glaciers melt. We would see that, when others suffer, the collective human body is set back from the progression of our species.
A world without caste would set everyone free.”

Sanjay Krishna 

"Radical empathy, on the other hand, means putting in the work to educate oneself and to listen with a humble heart to understand another's experience from their perspective, not as we imagine we would feel. Radical empathy is not about you and what you think you would do in a situation you have never been in and perhaps never will. It is the kindred connection from a place of deep knowing that opens your spirit to the pain of another as they perceive it."

Kevin. j Mercil 

Exceptional a must read for all people born to the privileged caste .A book that inspires self reflection. A book that motivates one to truly attempt change.

Stephanie Ridiculous

The best kind of history; blended with narrative and information, laced with insight and perspective that we all could stand to hear more of. Wilkerson does a great job of making complex and nuanced topics approachable and revealing, inviting us to see both the bigger picture and our individual involvement. 

I hadn't realized the depths of the caste system in India & comparing it to the US and Nazi Germany put each system in stark relief. This book has pretty solidly shifted the way I conceptualize the US & how I'll frame my country in future discussions and critique. I highly highly recommend this book to all folks in the United States, and particularly to my fellow majority culture relations.

Major content warnings for depictions of abuse, crimes against humanity, torture, the holocaust, slavery. They are handled well, but can be hard to read.

Mariane Ferrantino 

Such an uncomfortable but necessary read. This should be required reading.

Courtney Woolery

Madhuri Sridhara

A richly detailed book about the racial and caste system that is prevalent in America, India and Nazi Germany. Although a bit longer than necessary, this was a thought-provoking look at African-American history, their enslavement and how race plays an unconscious role in the decisions we make.

Essential reading.

Omar Fernandez

By comparing the US with the caste system in India and the persecution of Jews in Germany during the Hitler years, Wilkerson makes a compelling case that US society has shape-shufted but retains many of the same characteristics of a caste system. 

Cindy Lieberman

Essential reading! Well-researched and well-written discussion about the artificial (ie man-made) strata of caste — what we call “race” in America. Ms. Wilkerson examines and compares the caste system in India to that of the US and Nazi Germany. 
According to her research, the Nazi regime based their race and eugenics laws on what was already enacted in the US, yet in some cases did not go as far as the US laws!? They operated in a more concentrated period of time vs the hundreds of years of slavery in America and the many millions of people of African descent put to death, used for forced medical experimentation, and/ or denied the chance to have families by the upper caste members in power. 
The economic damage done to people of color is more thoroughly outlined in the excellent “The Color of Law,” yet there is still a good discussion here vof Germany’s memorials, Holocaust teachings, and reparations in this book as a means of showing what could be possible. No, what should be done. What needs to be done to heal the racial divide in America. 
There’s also a section that is helpful in understanding the phenomenon of Trump. Specifically lower- and middle-class whites desperate to maintain their role in the caste hierarchy in the face of America’s growing minority population.

“As we go about our daily lives, caste is the wordless usher in a darkened theater, flashlight cast down in the aisles, guiding us to our assigned seats for a performance. The hierarchy of caste is not about feelings or morality. It is about power—which groups have it and which do not.”
 
In this brilliant book, Isabel Wilkerson gives us a masterful portrait of an unseen phenomenon in America as she explores, through an immersive, deeply researched narrative and stories about real people, how America today and throughout its history has been shaped by a hidden caste system, a rigid hierarchy of human rankings.
 
Beyond race, class, or other factors, there is a powerful caste system that influences people’s lives and behavior and the nation’s fate. Linking the caste systems of America, India, and Nazi Germany, Wilkerson explores eight pillars that underlie caste systems across civilizations, including divine will, bloodlines, stigma, and more. Using riveting stories about people—including Martin Luther King, Jr., baseball’s Satchel Paige, a single father and his toddler son, Wilkerson herself, and many others—she shows the ways that the insidious undertow of caste is experienced every day. She documents how the Nazis studied the racial systems in America to plan their out-cast of the Jews; she discusses why the cruel logic of caste requires that there be a bottom rung for those in the middle to measure themselves against; she writes about the surprising health costs of caste, in depression and life expectancy, and the effects of this hierarchy on our culture and politics. Finally, she points forward to ways America can move beyond the artificial and destructive separations of human divisions, toward hope in our common humanity.

Beautifully written, original, and revealing, Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents is an eye-opening story of people and history, and a reexamination of what lies under the surface of ordinary lives and of American life today.
--https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/653196/caste-oprahs-book-club-by-isabel-wilkerson/9780593230268

Flavia Louise

This was a very interesting and different look at the world and how it works.

'Required reading for all of humanity' Oprah Winfrey 'An instant American classic and almost certainly the keynote nonfiction book of the American century thus far.' Dwight Garner, The New York Times 'The hierarchy of caste is not about feelings or morality. It is about power - which groups have it and which do not' Beyond race or class, our lives are defined by a powerful, unspoken system of divisions. In Caste, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Isabel Wilkerson gives an astounding portrait of this hidden phenomenon. Linking America, India and Nazi Germany, Wilkerson reveals how our world has been shaped by caste - and how its rigid, arbitrary hierarchies still divide us today. With clear-sighted rigour, Wilkerson unearths the eight pillars that connect caste systems across civilizations, and demonstrates how our own era of intensifying conflict and upheaval has arisen as a consequence of caste. Weaving in stories of real people, she shows how its insidious undertow emerges every day; she documents its surprising health costs; and she explores its effects on culture and politics. Finally, Wilkerson points forward to the ways we can - and must - move beyond its artificial divisions, towards our common humanity. Beautifully written and deeply original, Caste is an eye-opening examination of what lies beneath the surface of ordinary lives. No one can afford to ignore the moral clarity of its insights, or its urgent call for a freer, fairer world.

The Lies That Divide Us

Bailey Sawka

This book was so amazing to read and learn more about. There are parts of this book that I kind of struggled with because I didn’t know the history in the areas and it broke my heart in some places. I loved reading through Wilkerson’s insights and studies into the Caste system in America and find it necessary to view it as such.

Shannon Flanakin

It is extremely important that we face the horrific reality of our past (and present) to hope for a better future. I learned so much. Everyone should read this.

Wilkerson's prose along with her incorporation of research, history, and anecdotes cemented the ideas in each chapter. 

The unspeakable torture, dehumanization, and separations from family that those forced into slavery endured and even the lynchings of the jim crow era seem so far in the past, but to this day the casual disregard for black life is ubiquitous as shown by the thousands of police and vigilante shootings of unarmed black citizens. But it's not only this outward display of hatred/racism that upholds the caste system; just as important are the unconscious biases, the silent compliance of the upper caste and the desire of the upper caste to keep their place as if life is a zero-sum game.

Some of the most striking moments for me:
-The notion that race is really an arbitrary social construct created in America.
- I had no idea how much inspiration the Nazis took from America in the classification and treatment of the lowest caste (noting that "the one-drop rule was too harsh for the Nazis")
-2022 marks the first year that the U.S. will have been an independent nation for as long as slavery lasted on its soil.
-The story of the little boy who wasn't allowed to swim with his baseball team but was eventually allowed to make one lap atop a floating device only after everyone else got out of the pool, reminding him "just don't touch the water"
-That the south still displays statues of confederate leaders who many are proud of rather than ashamed of, and how connected these symbols of slavery are to the notion that the upper caste will do anything to keep their perceived superiority, as shown by the 2016 election.

This was a very challenging read, but I like how Wilkerson ends the novel with a sentiment of hope. As a white person, I know that empathy is no substitute for experience itself, but with privilege comes the responsibility of allyship, and "the moral duty to act when one sees another person treated unfairly".

Caste The Origins of Our Discontents

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