Play the Game. Change the Game. Leave the Game.: Pathways to Black Empowerment, Prosperity, and Joy [Audiobook]

Instead of waiting for White people to change, Black people must prioritize their own prosperity, power, and self-determination by navigating, challenging, and exiting racist systems—a radical argument from a Harvard behavioral scientist. It’s time to face an inconvenient truth: our current approach to fighting racism is just not working. For a brief moment following the murder of George Floyd, it seemed as though the country had finally acknowledged the destructive legacy of slavery and White supremacy, and had committed to putting things right. Now, a horde of prominent voices—many of whom professed to be antiracist allies—are pulling back, cutting support, and defunding programs that sought to level the playing field. Harvard psychologist Robert Livingston contends that racism operates like an addiction for so many White people: hard to admit, and even harder to quit. Given their unwillingness to kick the habit, where does this leave Black people? In this provocative book, Livingston has flipped the script, asking: How can Black people attain prosperity and peace of mind despite the enduring presence of racism? Drawing on social science, his own experiences, and interviews with trailblazing Black leaders and luminaries, Livingston reveals the contours of these oft overlapping paths for effectively navigating, mitigating, and circumventing White supremacy. Play the Game. Change the Game. Leave the Game. is a bold, groundbreaking proposition that empowers listeners to make the leap from being played to creating their own game plan.