Book excerpt: Contrary to those mainstream efforts that paint racism and social oppression as remnants of a troubled past, today’s relations of social power remain intractable as they continue to mediate and discipline the lives of the oppressed. Recognizing that racism and other forms of oppression continue to evolve and adapt to our changing times, it is crucial that our strategies for resistance are equally dynamic and proactive. In this reader, Leeno Karumanchery has brought together some of critical theory’s most powerful and insurgent voices to explore this vital strand of the anti-racist tapestry by asking, “How do we understand our oppression, and how do we frame and manage our resistance in the face of it?” Engaging Equity is framed as a sociohistoric expose of the Western educational system, revealing the banality of oppression in today’s schools. Developed within a philosophy of hope, this book reminds us that real and meaningful change towards social justice can be achieved, but only if our politics, strategies, and resolve are equal to the task.