Grand, Rapids, Mich. (Sept. 14, 2020)— Zondervan Reflective, an imprint of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, today announced The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the American Church’s Complicity in Racism by Jemar Tisby has sold more than 100,000 copies in print, audio and digital formats.
“We are so pleased that The Color of Compromise has reached this milestone. We are proud to be Jemar’s publisher and thankful that his message is resonating with readers at this crucial moment in American history,” said Stan Gundry, senior vice president and publisher of Zondervan Academic and Reflective. “It is our hope that Jemar’s words will change the hearts and minds of everyone they touch.”
In The Color of Compromise, Tisby surveys America’s racial past, from early colonial days through slavery and the Civil War, Jim Crow laws and the Civil Rights era, to the Black Lives Matter movement, uncovering the roots of sustained injustice. He exposes the concrete and chilling ways people of faith have actively worked against racial justice, and the deafening silence or overt opposition of the white evangelical majority. Tisby also charts a path forward with intriguing ideas that challenge readers to reverse these patterns and systems of complicity with bold, courageous, and immediate action.
“I’m feeling a mix of emotions,” said Tisby, who is co-founder and president of The Witness: A Black Christian Collective, and a Ph.D candidate in history at the University of Mississippi. “Hitting this milestone is great news. But at the same time, knowing what it took to get here and what sparked this renewed interest in the topic of racial justice is sobering.”
Nearly 18 months after its release, The Color of Compromise landed on the New York Times Best Seller list in June 2020, in the Paperback Nonfiction category where it remained for three weeks. It also appeared on the USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists and is a Library Journal’s Best Books and The Englewood Review Book of the Year 2019 winner.
In his next book, How to Fight Racism: Courageous Christianity and the Journey Toward Racial Justice, Tisby enables readers to become proactive initiators of racial justice by offering an array of actionable items to confront racism in everyday life. Far more than a simple list of items to do, it also provides a simple framework to help readers consistently interrogate their own actions and maintain a posture of anti-racist action. How to Fight Racism releases in January 2021.
About the Author: Jemar Tisby (BA, University of Notre Dame; MDiv, Reformed Theological Seminary) is president of The Witness: A Black Christian Collective, where he writes about race, religion, politics, and culture and cohosts the Pass The Mic podcast. His writing has been featured in The New York Times, The Atlantic, and CNN. His latest piece for The Atlantic is “The Familial Language of Black Grief.” Tisby is a PhD candidate in history at the University of Mississippi with a focus on race, religion, and social movements in the twentieth century.
About Zondervan: Zondervan is a world leading Bible publisher and provider of Christian communications. Zondervan, part of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Inc., delivers transformational Christian experiences through its bestselling Bibles, books, curriculum, academic resources and digital products. The Company’s products are sold worldwide and translated into nearly 200 languages. Zondervan offices are located in Grand Rapids, Mich. For additional information, please visit www.zondervan.com.
Contact: Amy Bigler, Senior Manager of Publicity, amy.bigler@harpercollins.com
