I think we all feel dismay and disbelief at how hatred and lies so twisted the mind of a teenager that he would take a gun and go to Buffalo, New York, and kill people he had never met just because of the color of their skin.

How does racism still persist in my country, I ask myself. And what can I do about it?

My own search for answers to these questions started with reading “Waking Up White, and Finding Myself in the Story of Race” by Debbie Irving. It is a gentle, first-person account by a woman much like myself: born into a secure and loving family in a mostly-white town, privileged with a good education and many other advantages that I assumed most people had, growing up a sincere desire to help people of color, but not knowing where to begin.

Irving writes in her book that the first thing to do when trying to combat racism is to become more educated about it or our efforts may do more harm than good.

Reading this gentle book was for me the first step on a journey I am committed to take. Perhaps others might want to start this journey as well. If so, this book is a great place to begin.

Luann Tennant Coyne, Naperville

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