"Biased" draws upon extensive research (including her own) to provide insight into how our often unconscious minds are prone to implicit biases e.g. damaging stereotypes.
Eberhardt, a social psychologist, grounds her analysis in fundamental aspects of human behaviour such as why we are "hardwired to see difference" and we tend to see people outside our "group" as being a threat. She traces the historical roots of the association between blackness and being sub-human (e.g. akin to apes), an association that has had devastating impacts and lingers in many structural forms across the world e.g. migration, education, employment, incarceration. However, this book is not just about racism. Its insights speak to the limitations of our minds, and how casting attention to our own biases is central to fairer societies. To this end, Eberhardt also draws upon her extensive experience in training (e.g. US police forces) to put forward some pragmatic solutions to address implicit bias.
Overall, this book was eye-opening. Eberhardt skilfully combines powerful stories and research insights to give attention to how our implicit biases shape can shape our world. Her message is clear - bias is not the domain of a select few "bigots", it is part of the human condition... but we all have the power and responsibility to transform it.
