Racial Justice Resource Guide

This guide focuses on resources for the study of racial justice in the U.S. It is a work in progress and will continue to be updated. Please use the tabs on the left of this guide to navigate to recommended resources. This guide is by no means exhaustive and is limited to items that Amherst College Library can provide remote access to. If you would like for us to add a related book or film, please send your suggestion to library@amherst.edu.

The Amherst College Library unequivocally supports Black Lives Matter and all who protest police violence against Black people and state-sanctioned violence in all its forms. Our staff shares grief and anger in response to the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, Nina Pop, and so many—too many—more in the deep history of the United States. We also acknowledge that statements of solidarity are not enough. 

The library does not stand apart from this history. As a white-led organization in a majority-white professional field, we have a responsibility to be specific and clear about our beliefs and our values, to apologize for missteps, and to listen and act when our community asks us to do better. The library thus reaffirms our commitment to the ongoing, active work of anti-racism; to continuing to better understand and address the ways that systemic racism and anti-blackness are present in our organizational practices, collections, catalog, programs, and services; and to using our resources to advance the production of knowledge for greater equity and justice.

We can only do this work well in partnership with our community. Please contact the Library Diversity & Inclusion Committee (library-di-comm-l@amherst.edu) or the Director of the Library (mgarnar@amherst.edu) with questions, thoughts, or concerns related to this statement and its commitments. We would also love to hear from you with suggestions for our Racial Justice Resource Guide in development; please email library@amherst.edu