Racial Exhaustion - by Ralina L Joseph

Book Synopsis

How to build stamina to confront racial exhaustion and communicate differently about race

In the wake of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, many Americans--regardless of race--find themselves exhausted by conversations about race and racism. People of color continue to bear the weight of systemic racism while also shouldering the burden of explaining and confronting daily microaggressions. White people, whether allies or skeptics, often feel defensive, fatigued, or uncertain about how to engage in discussions about race. Across the spectrum, the result is the same: exhaustion.

Drawing from her experience running "Interrupting Privilege," a racial dialogue program, Ralina Joseph blends personal narrative, real-world dialogue, and critical race scholarship to explore how we communicate race today--and how we can do better. Through practices of deep listening, embracing discomfort, and interrupting microaggressions, this book guides readers in transforming everyday interactions into opportunities for anti-racist change. Racial Exhaustion challenges us to recognize and address the fatigue that racial discourse brings while offering practical strategies to foster more equitable and productive conversations.

Review Quotes

"Racial Exhaustion urgently confronts the toll of systemic racism and offers a bold, actionable blueprint for transforming fatigue into communicative power and lasting change. With clarity, empathy, and hope, Joseph charts a path from fatigue to forward motion. This book is a balm for our times!"-- "E. Patrick Johnson, Dean of the School of Communication, Northwestern University"

"In a political environment in which DEI has been rendered toxic, how can we talk about race and fight racism? Mixing her own life story, pioneering research, and broad institutional experience, Ralina Joseph makes a compelling case that radical listening and radical speaking can position us for true reparative dialogue. The result, in this brilliant and eminently readable book, is a roadmap for making our way past racial exhaustion. Racial Exhaution is essential reading for all--those who continue to suffer from racism and those who, unwittingly or not, perpetuate it."-- "David N. Myers, University of California, Los Angeles"

"This is a very timely intervention at the intersection of recent interest in the radical potential of 'listening' and rapidly growing disillusionment with the limitations and pitfalls of conventional DEI programs. The triple braid of first-person auto-ethnography, participant reflections on radical listening experiences and critical race and intersectional scholarship is a unique and compelling contribution in a beautifully written book. A highly recommended, urgent read in the interdisciplinary field of 'listening' scholarship and practice, communication, race and racism and more."-- "Tanja Dreher, University of New South Wales"

"In a world structured by multiple forms of racism, many people of color feel exhausted--by inequities, discrimination, being misunderstood, being ignored, of being done with it all. In this brilliant book, Joseph not only names these feelings as 'racial exhaustion' but also offers readers a crucial map through which to move through and navigate these feelings without giving up. As with all her excellent work, Joseph expertly entwines theory with practice, giving us a critical guide to teach us how to 'critically communicate race.' Along the way she provides a strikingly original and deeply moving account of what it means to be exhausted by race, and how to continue to move forward."-- "Sarah Banet-Weiser, University of Pennsylvania"

"Ralina Joseph's unique assemblage of scholarship-pedagogy-practice proficiency sets Racial Exhaustion apart. Drawing on experiential data, storytelling, and interviews, there is no other book that takes the approach of not only critically engaging the tough topic of race-based stress and trauma, but does so while leaning into identifiable change-making and problem-solving approaches. Groundbreaking and impactful, Racial Exhaustion is desperately needed now more than ever."-- "Robin R. Means Coleman, University of Virginia"

About the Author

Ralina L. Joseph is Vice Provost of Inclusive Excellence and Professor of African American Studies at University of California, Los Angeles. She is the author of several books, including Postracial Resistance: Black Women, Media Culture, and the Uses of Strategic Ambiguity.