Brief Summary of Chapter 14

Working Together

Chapter 12 begins with the observation, "The most important lesson that the social scientists have to teach us is that overcoming racism and realizing the civil rights dream is extremely difficult but not impossible." By describing things that we can do together, this chapter mirrors in chapter 11 which discussed what we can do as individuals. Ideas include changing policies and practices of institutions, joining in what King called beloved community, developing restitution strategies for the damage of racism, and transforming our education and criminal justice systems. The book ends with a reminder that King challenges us with the words, "The time is always right to do the right thing."