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Other World
We speak in we. A journey towards racial healing and the relationships that set us free.
Addressing the leaders of today and tomorrow, An Other World alternates between heart-wrenching but hopeful letters to Hanif Fazal’s daughter Amina, reflections on Fazal’s formative life experiences and lessons on identity, Black and Brown relationships, and a unique type of freedom that could be available to all of us.
In this moving blend of social commentary and memoir with a call to action, Fazal―co-founder of the Center for Equity and Inclusion―documents his journey towards Black and Brown joy, freedom, and belonging. This timely book traces Fazal’s relationships with Black and Brown family members, professional colleagues, and close friends as they attempt to thrive at home, school, and work in the all-consuming whiteness of Portland, Oregon, and the broader United States landscape.
Fazal's youth involved a constant experience as the other in an all-white school system, breakdowns in family, and feeling split between his Mexican and Indian heritages. He went on to create programs that offered healing and belonging to BIPOC youth in schools and to BIPOC adults in the workplace.
In An Other World , Fazal pinpoints how educational and professional diversity frameworks often perform surface-level inclusion but refuse to invest fully in the complex realities of their BIPOC learners and employees. He also stares down the myth of “making it” and invites BIPOC communities to reflect and redefine success on their own terms.
Addressing the leaders of today and tomorrow, An Other World alternates between heart-wrenching but hopeful letters to Hanif Fazal’s daughter Amina, reflections on Fazal’s formative life experiences and lessons on identity, Black and Brown relationships, and a unique type of freedom that could be available to all of us.
In this moving blend of social commentary and memoir with a call to action, Fazal―co-founder of the Center for Equity and Inclusion―documents his journey towards Black and Brown joy, freedom, and belonging. This timely book traces Fazal’s relationships with Black and Brown family members, professional colleagues, and close friends as they attempt to thrive at home, school, and work in the all-consuming whiteness of Portland, Oregon, and the broader United States landscape.
Fazal's youth involved a constant experience as the other in an all-white school system, breakdowns in family, and feeling split between his Mexican and Indian heritages. He went on to create programs that offered healing and belonging to BIPOC youth in schools and to BIPOC adults in the workplace.
In An Other World , Fazal pinpoints how educational and professional diversity frameworks often perform surface-level inclusion but refuse to invest fully in the complex realities of their BIPOC learners and employees. He also stares down the myth of “making it” and invites BIPOC communities to reflect and redefine success on their own terms.
- GenresNonfiction
240 pages, Paperback
Published October 17, 2023
9 people are currently reading
77 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
October 19, 2023
An Other World is a poignant account of what it is like to be an "other" in a culture built upon white supremacy, specifically growing up in "Whitelandia", Portland, Oregon. In a personal story-telling of first-hand experiences, we see the stresses and formidable obstacles inherent to people of color in this construct in home, school, and work landscapes. An Other World dives deep into what it means to belong for people of mixed-race heritage and their unique position. How something as seemingly small as the year-after-year mispronunciation of your name in a public school setting creates otherness. As a person whose name spelling was changed in order to "assimilate," it was so great to hear someone write about this. Hanif goes on to incorporate his 25+ years of expertise working in the area of race equity with thoughtful paths forward for the BIPOC community; and how freedom, joy, and belonging are in grasp within the arms of one another.
October 20, 2023
What an amazing journey Hanif has traveled. As a Brown woman who struggled raising children in the midst of poverty Hanif's story presented me with an different viewpoint of how women of color often find themselves as "others" in a white centered environment. Thank you Hanif for sharing your journey to reconnecting with your family, establishing community and friends and most importantly discovering the meaning of having joy as your baseline. Your letters to your daughter were heartfelt. This book will definitely be offered as a suggestion for our next book club reading.
September 17, 2024
In An Other World, Hanif Fazal writes about his experience navigating whiteness and privilege as a brown boy. Except that his words NEVER center whiteness. He experienced and writes about loss of identity, loss of opportunity, loss of mobility and freedom. Loss of possibility. And loss of trust.
It's beautiful and painful and powerful. He values relationships and connections and invests in people over programs. He explains how he knows what he knows. He credits lived experiences several times.
Highly recommended.
It's beautiful and painful and powerful. He values relationships and connections and invests in people over programs. He explains how he knows what he knows. He credits lived experiences several times.
Highly recommended.
October 19, 2023
An Other World offers us a look into Hanif Fazal's journey but really tells a story about us, as a BIPOC community. As a Person of Color, so many pieces of this book are connecting and resonate with my own experience. Sharing many examples and moments of how white supremacy has generationally shaped BIPOC folx, Fazal beautifully offers how we can heal, find joy, and reimagine future generations' possibilities.
October 19, 2023
Hanif's book is a literary masterpiece that challenges people to reimagine the racialized world we want to live in, disrupt things that no longer serve us, and create opportunities where we can grow together. His emphasis on "joy as our baseline" captures the essence of each story, narrative, and experience that is expressed throughout the book. This book is a conversation, not a lecture. An Other World is required reading!
November 6, 2024
Powerful
This book resonated with me deeply, sparking moments of reflection where I thought, “I’ve experienced something like that, this is familiar for me too.” Each page offered a sense of validation through its bold and courageous vulnerability, while also challenging me to grow and look inward. I’m incredibly grateful for this book and the powerful impact it’s having on my life.
This book resonated with me deeply, sparking moments of reflection where I thought, “I’ve experienced something like that, this is familiar for me too.” Each page offered a sense of validation through its bold and courageous vulnerability, while also challenging me to grow and look inward. I’m incredibly grateful for this book and the powerful impact it’s having on my life.
September 25, 2023
An Other World is a book that invites you in. It's a love letter to community, a search for joy and connection, but ultimately it is a gift. I couldn't stop reading it and now I can't stop thinking about it. It's the kind of book you want to give to everyone you know and say - "stop what you're doing, read this."
October 19, 2023
Heartfelt and vulnerable, this book surfaces the themes of identity, belonging and the importance of relationships within Black and brown communities. The author does a phenomenal job of pulling the reader in through story and an authentic account of his experiences growing up and raising a daughter in a Portland, OR.
This book is a must read.
This book is a must read.
May 15, 2025
Hanif Fazal tells his life story of a homeless teen to an advocate for all minority youth in Portland, OR. His honesty and descriptions of his life are interesting and upbeat. It helps everyone understand what he and so many black and brown children go through.
August 1, 2025
Great book that speaks about trauma from the perspective of western culture encroaching on established ideals. I liked it.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews