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National Book Award Nominee: “With intelligence and care (and a treasure trove of true stories, at times heartbreaking and at times illuminating), Heather McGee shows us what racism has cost us all.” —Elizabeth Gilbert. A Financial Times Summer Book Selection by Gillian Tate. What would drive a society to empty its public pools and fill them with concrete instead of opening them to everyone? Economist Heather McGee travels across America to find out why white voters so often act against their own interests. Why do they block changes that would help them, even destroying their advantages, when people of color would also benefit? Their tragedy is the belief that they can only win if others lose. But this is a lie. McGee marshals compelling economic evidence and a tremendous amount of empathy to reveal the surprising truth: Even racists lose under white supremacy. And American racism is everyone’s problem. As McGee explains, it was intolerant lending policies that paved the way for the 2008 financial crisis. There is little hope of addressing global climate change until America's zero-sum delusions are defeated. "The Sum of Us" offers invaluable insight into the mechanisms of prejudice and a timely call for solidarity among all human beings, "to weave a new story about who we can be for each other."