White privilege is a hot topic these days for obvious and unfortunate reasons, but it’s been on Molly Secours’ mind for many years. In 2006, she posted a story online titled “Here Comes the Neighborhood: Anytown USA,” recalling her experience at a crime meeting in her East Nashville neighborhood — where the consensus seemed to be, if you see young Black teens in hoodies, call the cops. In 2012, shortly after George Zimmerman shot and killed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin (who was wearing a hoodie), Secours devised the White Privilege Pop Quiz, a short multiple-choice quiz with questions such as “How often have you been given safety instructions about walking through a department store or public establishment so that you don’t foster suspicion or attract attention?” The quiz attracted plenty of attention, and it’s been taken by many thousands of people in the intervening years. With the renewed spotlight on racial justice issues following the deaths of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Elijah McClain and others at the hands of police, Secours decided it was time to expand the quiz into a book. Each of the 13 chapters in White Privilege Pop Quiz: Reflecting on Whiteness focuses on one question from the quiz, with Secours offering insightful food for thought, not to mention reflections on some of her own privileged experiences. The book spent three weeks at the top of Parnassus Books’ bestseller list, recently ceding the top spot to one Barack Obama. It’s a great and timely conversation starter, as summed up in a testimonial from Nontombi Naomi Tutu, the author, activist and daughter of renowned anti-apartheid activist Archbishop Desmond Tutu: “This book is not something you should read if you just want to appear ‘woke’ as the young people say. … However, if you are really interested in learning how we got here, why we stay here and how we can all make it out of this system alive, this is the book for you.” Get your copy at Parnassus Books. JACK SILVERMAN
Read White Privilege Pop Quiz
