Recently I finished the book “Such a Fun Age” written by Kiley Reid. This book changed my thinking on privilege as well as how inter-racial relationships, be it platonic or romantic. 

The book is set in Philadelphia where a young Black woman starts babysitting for an affluent White family, the Chamberlains. During a family emergency, Emira, the babysitter, has to take the children to a grocery store late at night. When going through the grocery store with the children she is accused of kidnapping the children because she did not look like their mother. This incident leads to Emira and the Chamberlains into an awkward forced relationship that leads to plot twists and betrayals. 

This has really opened my eyes to the microaggressions and mistakes that White people make in their daily lives toward Black people. While many believe themselves to be “woke” sometimes people use that term to hide their actual actions. This book is truly toward people who deem themselves “woke” or antiracist because it sort of calls people out on their inability to change. I suggest that everyone read this book because of the powerful message it conveys. While the story itself is captivating, the lesson that I learned is most important of all.