The Unrelenting Whiteness of The New York Times Summer Reading List

When The New York Times’ Janet Maslin released her Summer reading list for 2015, the fact that it contained 17 books by 17 white authors did not go unnoticed. In a year when national events have made race, diversity and embracing difference a topic of national discussion, many were stunned that Times’ Summer reading list of 2015 is so homogeneous. Jason Parham, writing for Gawker congratulated Maslin and The Times for achieving “peak caucasity,” and Slate.com’s Katy Waldman wondered if Maslin “believed she had compelling reason to confine her search for worthy books to a single racial group”. 

Proof That People of Color Write Books

The silver lining: in response to Maslin’s inexplicably uniform reading list,  a diverse group authors, publications and commentators have created alternative summer reading lists that are more inclusive. Melissa Harris-Perry of MSNBC’s The Melissa-Harris Perry Show…