Upcoming Events
Some Goings On, Anywhere, Anytime...
Check back weekly for new additions, and always, additions and suggestions welcome!
ongoing
The Black Freedom Lectures
The Black Freedom Lectures is a series bringing together renowned Black scholars to share knowledge and spark discussion on topics with an explicit Black liberation lens. Inspired by Black-led grassroots education efforts going back over a century, these lectures will be free and open to all participants, but will center Black learners and the goal of Black freedom in their pedagogical design, with the understanding that—to quote historian Barbara Ransby—such a learning space “contextualizes the oppression, exploitation, and liberation of Black poor and working class people within the understanding, at least in the US context, that ‘once all Black people are free, all people will be free.’” Each lecture will follow the following format:
· Pre-reading: Participants will have access to a short reading to check out before the lecture.
· Lecture: A free talk by an amazing scholar discussing an issue imperative to Black liberation.
· Squads: Why process everything on your own? We encourage you to form a “squad” of people committed to learning alongside you. It can be your book club, a church group, some interested coworkers, or just a few of the homies. Squads can meet together, talk about the lecture and the readings, and prepare any questions you have for the speaker. The Teach Out is a GREAT place to meet people, and to develop squads for the lectures!
· Q&A: The lecturer will have a live Q&A with curator Eve L. Ewing or a special guest, asking some of the follow-up questions submitted by participants.
· More to read: The lecturer will recommend one to two books for those participants who want to read more about the topic. We will also hold a raffle for a lecture attendee to receive a copy of one of the recommended books, purchased from our friends at the Black woman-owned Semicolon Bookstore.
That’s it. It’s free. Find more information here and come through.
Past Events
May 4 - June 14, 2021
DanceAfrica 2021
Find out more about the event here.
May 18-22, 2021
PEN America World Voices Festival
The 2021 PEN World Voices Festival convenes fiction and nonfiction writers, poets, translators, thinkers, and activists to honor the art of the possible and the power of storytelling to push boundaries, challenge inherited narratives, and give voice to hope, courage, and survival. In a year when division and bloodshed have been fueled by hatreds based on race, ethnicity, and religion, the Festival celebrates resilience and courage, and summons the powers of the radical imagination and literature as gateways to reckoning and reconciliation.
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Festival tickets available at the website https://pen.org/2021-world-voices-festival/. 50% discount for tickets, available with code GEN5021WVF.
Tuesday, May 18, 2021 @ 7:00PM CST
Magic City Books: The Ground Breaking: Tulsa's Search for Justice with Scott Ellsworth
This is a virtual book launch event in celebration of the new book, The Ground Breaking. The Ground Breaking is a chronicle of not only the horrific events of 1921 but also of the decades that were spent ignoring the massacre that took place in Greenwood on May 31 and June 1, 1921. Ellsworth served as the chief historian on the Tulsa Race Riot Commission (1999-2000) and is chair of the committee leading the effort to identify the unmarked graves of victims of the 1921 riot for the upcoming 2021 Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial. Tickets for this event include one (1) copy of The Ground Breaking by Scott Ellsworth and one (1) link to the virtual event, hosted as a private Zoom event on Tuesday May 18, 2021 at 7:00 pm CDT.
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Register here.
Friday, May 14, 2021 @ 5:00pm PST
Stacey Abrams, in conversation with Katie Couric
This is a ticketed event, sponsored by Powell's Books. Purchasing a signed preorder copy of While Justice Sleeps ($28) entitles you to attend the virtual event with Abrams and Couric on Friday, May 14 at 5pm (PT). After you’ve purchased the book, Powell's will automatically register you for the Zoom event – and will send you a confirmation email two days prior to the event containing a Zoom link to the event and instructions on how to access it. A signed copy of While Justice Sleeps is available for the first 600 ticket buyers.
saturday, April 24, all day of panels & events
National Antiracist Book Festival
Register and buy tickets for the event here. All panels and sessions are online, via Zoom for the 2021 festival.
Wednesday, March 31 @ 7:00pm EST/4:00pm PST
Hanif Abdurraqib in conversation with Wesley Morris
Register for the event here. Buy Abdurraqib's new book, A Little Devil in America, from Greenlight Bookstore, using code HANIF15 for 15% off! Find more information about Greenlight Bookstore on our Knowledge page.