by Kaylie Seed
With his book The Skin We’re In, Canadian journalist and author Desmond Cole has put Canada in its place by calling out the racism and colonialism that dominates this country’s institutions. It’s time for Canadians to stop pushing aside the knowledge that we are a racist country, and to open our eyes to the white supremacy that resides in all of our institutions. In The Skin We’re In, Cole chronicles the year of 2017 in Canada, touching on the topics of government, police brutality, immigration, systematic racism, the school system, colonialism, Indigenous peoples, white supremacy, his own personal experiences with the Toronto Star, and Black Lives Matter. There is a lot in this book that needs to be unpacked and relearned. It will make you uncomfortable and it will force you to accept that Canada is not as high and mighty as it likes to think it is.
This 220-page nonfiction read is not only informative, it is incredibly engaging. Cole has written this as an eye-opening book with tough topics, yet its language is easy to read and understand. This makes The Skin We’re In very accessible to many readers, underlining the intent to have many people read and learn from this important resource in anti-racism work. I cannot say enough how amazing this read is. The Skin We’re In has reminded me of my own white privilege and of how all institutions in Canada were created for my benefit as a white person. This is something really hard to come to terms with because this has been taught and normalized from a young age, but geez, it is incredibly unfair that all human beings still aren’t treated equally. Unpacking biases won’t happen overnight but reading books like The Skin We’re In and searching for resources to add to your anti-racism toolbox is a place to start.
I recommend that all Canadians pick up this book and stop living in ignorance. Racism and colonialism are here and we must change our institutions to benefit everyone and make Black Lives Matter.