Please join us for a collaborative community discussion with author Heather McGhee about her acclaimed book The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together. This virtual event will take place on Thursday, October 13, 2022, at 7 p.m. RSVP here and the link will be shared in advance. This event was organized by Bryn Mawr's Parent Committee for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and is co-presented by Boys' Latin, Friends School of Baltimore, Gilman School and Roland Park Country School.
- Watch Heather McGhee on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah
- Listen to Heather McGhee on NPR’s Fresh Air
In her New York Times bestseller, "McGhee embarks on a deeply personal journey across the country from Maine to Mississippi to California, tallying what we lose when we buy into the zero-sum paradigm—the idea that progress for some of us must come at the expense of others.” The heart of McGhee's case is that racism is harmful to everyone, and thus we all have an interest in fighting it. Drawing on a wealth of economic data, she argues that when laws and practices have discriminated against African Americans, whites have also been harmed. When people unite across racial and ethnic lines, she argues, there's a solidarity dividend that helps everyone.
Heather McGhee is the former president of the progressive think tank Demos, where she spent much of her career. She holds a BA in American Studies from Yale and a law degree from the University of California, Berkeley.