This week on All Ears Abby talks to author and commentator Heather McGhee. Heather is a distinguished senior fellow at the progressive think tank Demos, where she also served as president for four years. Heather argues that the economic, intellectual, and societal costs of racism affect not only its victims but also its perpetrators. She tells Abby that America’s White middle class grew after WW2, with help from Federal housing subsidies, education grants and other benefits that were largely denied to Black Americans. Once Black Americans began demanding equal treatment, many of those programs were simply dismantled. This kind of racism, McGee tells Abby, cost everyone. Abby and Heather also delve into the political theft of Reconstruction, whether American racism is unique, the misogyny of libertarianism, and if the Karen memes are a harbinger of a backlash on feminism.

Heather’s heavily anticipated book, The Sum of Us, is due out in early 2021.

EPISODE LINKS:
“A White Man Asked C-Span How to Stop Being Racist. Here’s the Fascinating Answer” (Fortune)
“Racism Has A Cost For Everyone” (TED Talk)
“Facebook Fails to Appease Organizers of Ad Boycott” (NY Times)
Color of Change
Demos

Heather on Twitter: @hmcghee
Heather on Instagram: @HeatherCMcGhee