Description
From the bestselling author of Brown Is the New White, an explosive new argument for draining the swamp of white male privilege
“Steve Phillips situates our present crisis exactly where it belongs—within the long, unfinished struggle to make real the promise that all are created equal. . . . He reminds us that backlash is not new, but neither is resistance.” —Anna Malaika Tubbs, New York Times bestselling author of Erased and The Three Mothers
In a time when equal rights are facing an unparalleled assault, what if we’ve been framing the conversation about racial justice all wrong? Instead of focusing on the underrepresentation of people of color, what if we examined the overrepresentation of white men?
Building on the urgency and clarity of his New York Times and Washington Post bestseller Brown Is the New White and his “spirited and persuasive” (Publishers Weekly) How We Win the Civil War, these questions drive the explosive premise of author Steve Phillips’s latest book, Are White Men Smarter Than Everybody Else?
Just six years after the racial reckoning that followed the murder of George Floyd, we are witnessing a full-scale assault on equality in America unparalleled since the overthrow of Reconstruction. With the critical 2026 midterms approaching and DEI initiatives under attack nationwide, Phillips’s work is more relevant than ever. He moves beyond defensive measures to offer a powerful offensive strategy. The book introduces the concept of “Straight White American Male Preference” (S.W.A.M.P.) and systematically dismantles the myth of reverse racism.
Through twelve sharp, deeply researched chapters, Phillips reveals how this preference has shaped everything from corporate America and philanthropy to arts and government, creating systemic advantages for white men, who make up a minority (29 percent) of the U.S. population.
This isn’t just another book about inequality; it’s a playbook for a counterattack. Fearless and timely, this much-needed corrective offers equality-loving readers the arguments, data, and inspiration they need to challenge the status quo effectively.
Author Bio
Steve Phillips is a New York Times bestselling author, columnist, and national political thought leader. He is the author of Brown Is the New White as well as How We Win the Civil War (both from The New Press); he is also the founder of Democracy in Color, a political media organization dedicated to race, politics, and the multicultural New American Majority. Phillips is the host of Democracy in Color with Steve Phillips, a color-conscious podcast on politics. He is a regular columnist for The Nation and The Guardian.
Praise
Praise for Are White Men Smarter Than Everybody Else?
“Steve Phillips situates our present crisis exactly where it belongs—within the long, unfinished struggle to make real the promise that all are created equal. By tracing a line from the Gettysburg Address to the nationwide, and global, racial reckoning sparked by the murder of George Floyd, he reminds us that backlash is not new, but neither is resistance.”—Anna Malaika Tubbs, New York Times bestselling author of Erased and The Three Mothers
“Steve Phillips says the quiet part out loud. He names, with precision and urgency, the uncomfortable truth many of us, especially those of us who are white, have been taught to skirt around: racial inequality in America is the result of sustained conditioning that leads so many of us to believe that straight white men are far more competent than the rest of us. This book exposes who holds power—and why. This book doesn’t allow white readers to remain spectators. It calls us in and calls us out.”—Erin Heaney, executive director of Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ)
“For more than a decade Steve Phillips has been an indispensable analyst of America’s political failures—and political possibilities. Now, with this provocative and powerful book, he offers the modest suggestion that white men may not be smarter and more talented than the other 71 percent of the population—and that the way to find out is to end straight white American male preference—or, as he puts it so eloquently, the SWAMP—and create a truly multiracial democracy.”—Jon Wiener, historian, journalist, contributing editor of The Nation and host of The Nation’s weekly podcast, Start Making Sense
