Part I, A Definition of Terms, Chapter 1, Defining Racism, Summary and Analysis

Author Beverly Tatum opens Chapter One by pointing out that despite the perceptions of a few, racism still exists. It can be seen on television, through housing discrimination, in newspapers and lending practices. The social impact of racism begins early in life, even in preschool. The experience of children is limited to people very much like them and they can internalize false assumptions about other groups without challenge. For instance, nearly all children will draw a figure with a feather and a tomahawk when asked to sketch a Native American. In one course Tatum taught, a child denied that Cleopatra could be black because she was "beautiful."

Prejudice, in Tatum's view, is a preconceived judgment based on limited information. Prejudices are practically inescapable. Revealing prejudice...