Racism and how it has developed over the years is constantly evolving, shaped by shifting social norms, political power, and the everyday assumptions people often take for granted. Ainsley LeSure PhD offers some powerful insight on how racism since the end of the civil rights era has fundamentally weakened our ability to fight it. She explains how we got from the Obama era to Trump's openly racist politics--and why our current frameworks made this trajectory not just possible, but predictable. She offers a different approach and insight about what it would actually take to combat racism: a democratic politics grounded in observable reality that makes equality something people can act on in their daily lives, not just an abstract ideal. LeSure is the Richard and Edna Salomon Assistant Professor of Political Science and Africana Studies at Brown University.