 You'll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey: Crazy Stories About Racism, by Amber Ruffin and Lacey Lamar.
Sisters Amber Ruffin and Lacey Lamar co-wrote this book about Lacey, a Black woman living in Omaha, who seems to be a magnet for jaw-dropping experiences of racism. People feel remarkably comfortable announcing their prejudices to Lacey, often couched in assurances that "I didn't mean you, you're different." Sadly, none of the incidents Amber and Lacey describe are unbelievable, though often infuriating. Somehow, they manage to make even the worst ones hilarious. I suspect some of the experiences will be familiar to many Black people. Having people grope her hair without asking. Doctors dismissing her concerns. Being told her natural hair looked "unprofessional." Retail workers brushing her off because they were sure the item she wanted was "too expensive" for her. White guys on dating sites waxing lyrical about having "a taste for chocolate" (including one with a Confederate flag in his profile). Being mistaken for pretty much any other Black woman, including co-workers, celebrities, and in one confusing interaction, Harriet Tubman. An ugly recurring theme was being suspected/accused of theft, starting when she was a small child and the teacher noticed that she had fancier crayons than the other children. At a Christian youth gathering, a White woman announced her car keys were missing, and the pastor corralled the few Black teens present (all too young to drive) and harangued them to "do the right thing" and return the keys. Yes, of course it turned out the woman had left the keys in the car her damn self. Then there was the co-worker who routinely addressed Black female staff by a derogatory term. This was the rare instance where the right people got fired: both the racist jerk and the supervisor who tried to scuttle the HR investigation. My favorite moment: an acquaintance casually remarked that she wouldn't feel safe in North Omaha because of all the "diversity". Just then a friend happened by and asked Lacey how her book was going. "Great, I just got a new item for it." Naturally everyone else wanted to know about the book she was writing. "It's about the crazy racist things people say to me." Lacey and Amber recommend that all Black people claim to be writing a similar book. Popsugar Reading Challenge: A character with curly hair. 52 Book Club Challenge: Author's bio mentions their dog. Booklist Queen Challenge: Yellow cover.
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