BOOK REVIEW: OBSlERVlING RACISM '1I'HROUGH WIDTENESS AND ITS ENTITLlEMENTS WBITE PRIVILEGE: ESSENTIAL READINGS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF RACISM '},dedition Paula S. Rothenberg New York: Worth Publishers 200S 160pp. ESBN-I0:0716787334 lSBN-13:9780716787334 Reviewed by Pratiwi WiDiArtati If only prejudices, stereotypes, and discrimination were totally diminished from this world, needless to say that peace is something that we 1 Pratiwi Wini Artati, is is a full t:ime government officer in Instructional Technology at ICT Center for Education - Ministry of National Education Jakarta. She graduated from the Faculty of Letters Soegijapranata Catholic University in 2004. She is now cmrently pursuing her Master's Degree in Instructional Technology at Ohio University-USA. p. w. ArtGti, A Book.Review: Observing Racism through Whiteness 183 could always breathe in and out easily, effortlessly. If only everyone did not focus on differences, everybody would have always lived in harmony for such a long time ago and in the future to come. Putting aside all differences and paying more attention the commonality and similarity that tightens the values of humanity is what we need. We often hear and imagine this will come true. Yet, the world is filled with discrimination in almost every aspect inhuman life. One can be discriminated because of having different religion, sexual orientation, race, ideology, physical ability, and so forth. As to digging deeper in addressing this issue, this book by Paula Rothenberg is an inspiring formula from key essays and articles as a medium of selfretlection to study whiteness and white privilege as a courageous attempt to combat racism in personal and institutional level. Challenging white privilege means to revisit and rediscover the discomfort zone. This is never been so easy since nobody wants to be called as being racist. However, many times, what comes through speech and action is not always the same in which it sometimes creates dilemmatic experience in responding to discrimination practices as what is stated in the book: It is problematic because it categorizes and classifies, serves to no positive purposes and mostly used negatively. Even though the law protects the people and we are to be treated equally, it is the people's minds that won't change and what is causing this problem to still go on" (Rothenberg 2005: 1). The gist of the book is to make the issue of whiteness and white privilege to be visible - a medium of shared learning experiences which addresses multidimensional issue that consists of multiple layers and shapes. This is the area where experiences, perspectives, prejudices, stereotypes, and discrimination are taken into an account as a means to have a more understanding towards the other side of racism - not from the viewpoint of people of color but from the way white people perceive their own whiteness and white privilege. Furthermore, this book offers more insights about what's hidden along the way racism has been experienced, implemented, and perceived. It has become more interesting because this book reveals "the curtain" to see what has been invisible in discrimination practices to some extent. In order to be able to see the invisible, there's a need 188 Celt, Volume 8, Number 2, December 2008: 182-188 WHITENESS: THEPOWEROFRESISTANCE In continuation with chapter one, two, and three, chapter four has a function as challenging the willingness to see white privilege and how the willingness takes place as an attempt to ''break the silence" in the societal level. As it is hard to change what has been solidified for such a long term in the society, the changes begins from oneselfin the personal level in terms of choices in how implementing white privilege for better implication. To put it in another way, Paul Kivel places this chapter as the turning point of how white privilege can be used as allies as opposed to enemies, to people of color in the struggle to end the racism by what Beverly Tatum describes as "breaking the silence"with the paralysis offear- engaging more in dialogue about racial issues. In the same way, Joe Feagin and Hernan Vera encompasses on how to confront one's own racism by taking anti racist actions. As climax, the eight questions in the last page of chapter four address perfectly about the power of resistance in white privilege as it continues to be prevalent in the future. REFERENCES: Adams, Maurimme, et at. Readings for Diversity and Social Justice. New York: Routledge,2ooo. Rothenberg, Paula S. White Privilege: Essential Readings on the Other Side of Racism. New York: Worth Publishers, 200S.