The limits of white liberal antiracism mean that combatting structural racial inequality must be about building power, not sympathy

In the wake of the police murder of George Floyd in May of 2020, many Americans took to the streets under the banner of “Black Lives Matter” to protest deep-seated racial injustices that, unfortunately, are commonplace in American society. Notably, an overwhelming number of white Americans also participated in the protests – but did this mean that they were finally ready to match their antiracist rhetoric with action? Jared Clemons, a scholar of Black political thought, provides a theoretical account of white antiracism, and argues that despite their antiracist sentiments, so long as white liberals are unwilling to sacrifice their own familial capital, meaningful antiracist strategies must seek to change the political-economic conditions in society that produce racial inequality.