Reading Changes Lives
Livestreamed Book Discussions
Promoting Progressive Change
Reading Changes Lives Website | ReadingChangesLives2021@gmail.com
@ReadingChangesLives | #BecauseTruthMatters | Reading OurStory…together
Why do we read?
Because Black People Matter.
Please join The Global Black Feminist Reading Circle for Session 16 – Tuesdays, beginning September 28, 2021 – 6:00 – 7:30 pm ET – via Zoom and YouTube – as we share our reflections on Nothing Personal, by James Baldwin (Author), Imani Perry (Foreword) and Eddie S. Glaude, Jr. (Afterword). To join in the fun, contact OurBlackStory@gmail.com.
“James Baldwin’s critique of American society at the height of the civil rights movement brings his prescient thoughts on social isolation, race, and police brutality to a new generation of readers…Nothing Personal is Baldwin’s deep probe into the American condition…Baldwin’s documentation of his own troubled times cuts to the core of where we find ourselves today…Baldwin’s thoughts move through an interconnected range of questions, from America’s fixation on eternal youth, to its refusal to recognize the past, its addiction to consumerism, and the lovelessness that fuels it in its cities and popular culture…This edition also includes a new foreword from interdisciplinary scholar Imani Perry and an afterword from noted Baldwin scholar Eddie S. Glaude Jr. Both explore and situate the essay within the broader context of Baldwin’s work, the Movement for Black Lives, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the presidency of Donald Trump…” —The Publisher
#NothingPersonal
Because All Life Matters.
Reading For Change recently concluded its reading on the history of money, Debt: The First 5000 Years, (Revised edition), by David Graeber. Check out the videos of these chats! Here’s one:
“Before there was money, there was debt. For more than 5,000 years, since the beginnings of the first agrarian empires, humans have used elaborate credit systems to buy and sell goods—that is, long before the invention of coins or cash. It is in this era that we also first encounter a society divided into debtors and creditors—which lives on in full force to this day.
“So says anthropologist David Graeber in a stunning reversal of conventional wisdom. He shows that arguments about debt and debt forgiveness have been at the center of political debates from Renaissance Italy to Imperial China, as well as sparking innumerable insurrections. He also brilliantly demonstrates that the language of the ancient works of law and religion (words like ‘guilt,’ ‘sin,’ and ‘redemption’) derive in large part from ancient debates about debt, and shape even our most basic ideas of right and wrong.
“We are still fighting these battles today.”
“David Graeber [was] a professor of anthropology at the London School of Economics. One of the original organizers of Occupy Wall Street, Graeber [was] also the author of Utopia of Rules and has written for The Guardian, Harper’s, The Baffler, n+1, The Nation, The New Inquiry, and The New Left Review.” —Melville House
#DebtTheFirst5000Years
Stay tuned for our next selection. The weekly group meets Fridays at 6:00 pm ET via Zoom and YouTube. Readers are welcome to join us in the discussion online or watch the live event or video recordings on YouTube. For more info, contact ReadingForChange2015@gmail.com.
Because Real Love Matters.
Where is the LOVE? Revolutionary Love Leadership Series is not currently hosting livestreamed discussions, which means it’s the perfect time to catch up with our Video Archives.
If you would like to help kick start our next book discussion, send us some titles you’re interested in and let’s chat. Contact LoveLeaderLMO@gmail.com.
We’ve read the love letter Ta-Nehisi Coates wrote to his son – Between the World and Me; and Black Male-D, a collection of essays, commentaries and poetry compiled and produced by William S. Peters, Sr. of Inner Child Press. It highlights some of the ways we are not loving each other. Also, we chatted about Driven Toward Madness: The Fugitive Slave Margaret Garner and Tragedy on the Ohio, by Nikki M. Taylor. So the range of what we mean by love is wide!
Because Truth Matters.
Upcoming Events
See upcoming events below, or Search Our Calendar for All Events.
| Location | When | Summary | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| September 28, 2021 at 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm | Foreword & Chapter 1, Nothing Personal, by James Baldwin – Beacon Press, May 4, 2021 | The Global Black Feminist Reading Circle |
The Latest Blogs from Book Chat News
“Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome: America’s Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing,” by Joy DeGruy
SEE the Video Playlist of our chats on the Session 7 reading selection of The Global Black Feminist Reading Circle, October 4 to November 22, 2016 – Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome: America’s Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing by Joy DeGruy. L. Michelle Odom, host.
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Book Idea: “With Her First Raised: Dorothy Pitman Hughes and the Transformative Power of Black Community Activism,” by Laura Lovett
We haven’t read a biography in The Global Black Feminist Reading Circle. What do you think of this one: With Her First Raised: Dorothy Pitman Hughes and the Transformative Power of Black Community Activism, by Laura Lovett?
Keep reading
Re-Schedule Start of GBFRC S16
The launch of Session 16 of The Global Black Feminist Reading Circle is delayed until September 28th. Please plan on joining us then as we begin our dive into James Baldwin’s Nothing Personal. See you then!
Keep reading
Beyoncé’s “Formation”: Capitalism’s Mistress, Whore or Breeder?
SEE the Video Playlist of our chats on the Session 6a reading selection of The Global Black Feminist Reading Circle, February 16, 2016 – Beyoncé’s “Formation”: Capitalism’s Mistress, Whore or Breeder? L. Michelle Odom, host.
Keep reading
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Email: ReadingChangesLives2021@gmail.com
Website: Visit the Reading Changes Lives website often, for the latest news and features from our group.
Find An Event: See the Reading Changes Lives Google Calendar for all upcoming events.
Updates: See Book Chat News for the latest invitations, links to upcoming events, agendas and related materials, as well as links to raw videos.
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Reading OurStory…together
Reading Changes Lives Website | ReadingChangesLives2021@gmail.com
@ReadingChangesLives | #BecauseTruthMatters | Reading OurStory…together
