Description
Book SynopsisHow systemic racism and settler colonialism shapes the lives of people in the US todayW.E.B. Du Bois famously pondered a question he felt society was asking of him as a Black man in America: How does it feel to be a problem? Jessica Vasquez-Tokos uses this question to examine how communities of color are constructed as problems, and the numerous ramifications this has for their life trajectories. Uncovering how various members of racial groups understand and react to what their racial status means for inclusion in, or exclusion from, the nation, Burdens of Belonging examines the historical underpinnings of the racial-colonial hierarchy, the influence this hierarchy has on lived experience, and how racialized life experience influences the feelings, perspectives and goals of people of color. Burdens of Belonging is based on interviews with people in Oregon from various racial groups, and brings multiple racial groups' opinions together to weigh in on the ways in which race contours na
