Backtalker: An American Memoir

New York Times Bestseller

One of the most influential public intellectuals in the world and the architect of two of the biggest ideas to reshape the American conversation about fairness offers an intimate account of how her life gave birth to those ideas.

It is not often that someone comes along and permanently changes the way Americans think about two of the most important issues of the day: race and gender. But that is exactly what Kimberlé Crenshaw did when she articulated two concepts that would forever transform national and global debates about equality: intersectionality and critical race theory.

Backtalker is the powerful and intimate story of how a little girl from Canton, Ohio, developed a new way of seeing the world. Crenshaw’s memoir traces how her lived experiences enabled her to recognize what others could not — as the daughter of a strong-minded teacher and a groundbreaking public servant, and as the younger sister of a protective yet bullying older brother.

She began talking back early, and that backtalking continued throughout her life: when she was denied a role in her kindergarten school play; when she was escorted to the back door of a private club; when Anita Hill was ostracized for testifying against Clarence Thomas; when O. J. Simpson went on trial; when President Obama launched My Brother’s Keeper, a movement focused solely on boys of color; and when movements against police violence overlooked Black women. Crenshaw was present for all of it.

In the vein of Ta-Nehisi Coates and Bryan Stevenson, Crenshaw evokes each moment and place with the honesty, precision, and narrative power of a gifted novelist. The result is a series of profound revelations that illuminate the forces shaping American life and identity.

Through her groundbreaking work, Crenshaw has become a transformative force across America — in schools, workplaces, homes, and throughout the public sphere.