Last week I took a class (on Zoom, of course) offered by my book’s publisher on "Sensitivity in Fiction." We are living in an amazing time, a time like no other — and not only because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Because of the Black Lives Matter movement, we can no longer shrug our shoulders and ignore various facts of racism.

My husband doesn’t always remember the Hallmark holidays (Mother’s Day, Valentine’s Day, etc.). Often he gets a card — usually a terrific one. But once in a while there is a gift — and it is sometimes spectacular.

In May of 2016, on Mother’s Day, he outdid himself. He knows I am a musical theater nut. Few activities make me happier than live plays and I’ve been lucky enough to see quite a few on Broadway. He knew that I was dreaming of seeing the show "Hamilton"— and being the aspirational person that I am — the dream included seeing it on Broadway starring the writer and director of the show, Lin-Manuel Miranda. Lin-Manuel was leaving the show in June of 2016, so I thought the likelihood of that happening before he left was small.

The book, White Fragility, appears to have been written for me: a well-meaning progressive. The subtitle of the book is, “Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk about Racism”. The author, Robin Diangelo, is an expert in anti-racism. She writes to us well-meaning White folk, those who would never refer to ourselves as racist.