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| | | | | Tune in Monday, April 11 for our live interview show on WPKN 89.5FM, or wpkn.org, with Debra Mecky, Executive Director of the Greenwich History Society (GHS) on the Society’s dedication to uncover, elevate and amplify some of the lost or under-represented voices in local history, and specifically its second annual series of lectures, “Shining a Light,” with speakers who are dedicated to interpreting, restoring and preserving these histories. Along with Debra will be Heather Lodge, Manager of Youth & Family Programs at GHS, and two of the speakers in the series: Dennis Culliton, founder of The Witness Stones Project, and Maisa Tisdale, President & CEO of Bridgeport’s Mary & Eliza Freeman Center for History and Community.
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| | | | | | NEW CAARI CONVERSATION SERIES |
| | We are taking advantage of two speaker events and one storytelling concert to arrange a series of three discussions to extend and expand our collective commitment to addressing equity issues.
Our Collective Action Against Racism & Inequity (CAARI) started in October 2020, in response to member requests for a collective response to racism and inequity in our society and in our midst, with a series of three "Public Conversations" and an ongoing series of workshops, in which members meet regularly to better understand equity issues and to make changes through their work.
We hope you will buy the books and reserve your spot for the two author events and prepare for a co-presentation in early July, with The Norwalk Art Space, of a performance by the UBUNTU Storytellers, and a follow-up conversation. |
| | 1. Isabel Wilkerson, Author of Caste. Thurs. April 28, 8pm |
| | | The Talk: Buy your ticket to this Quick Center virtual event here |
| Pulitzer Prize winner and National Humanities Medal recipient Isabel Wilkerson is the author of two New York Times bestsellers: the critically acclaimed Caste, and National Book Critics Circle Award-winner The Warmth of Other Suns. Wilkerson was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for her work as Chicago Bureau Chief of The New York Times, making her the first black woman in the history of American journalism to win a Pulitzer and the first African-American to win for individual reporting. A gifted storyteller, Wilkerson captivates audiences with the universal human story of migration and reinvention, as well as the enduring search for the American dream. More... |
| | | The Book. Poetically written and brilliantly researched, Wilkerson’s newest work, Caste, invites us to discover the inner workings of an American hierarchy that goes far beyond the confines of race, class, or gender. Steeping her stories in empathy, insight, and first-person accounts, Wilkerson layers analysis with story to explore the structure of an unspoken system of human ranking and reveals how our lives are still restricted by what divided us centuries ago. |
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| | The Conversation. Tues May 3, 6pm
Sign up now for your spot in our Zoom discussion group, with expert facilitators (to be announced) for a discussion of Isabel Wilkerson's talk, and her book. Although reading the book is not a requirement, we would recommend it. Depending on numbers, we will divide the conversation into a number of break-out rooms. |
| | | 2. Heather McGhee, Author of The Sum of Us. Westport Library: Wed. May 18, 7pm
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| | The Talk: Reserve your free ticket to this Westport Library live event here
Westport Library, Westport Country Playhouse, TEAM Westport, Westport/Weston Interfaith Council, and the Westport/Weston Interfaith Clergy celebrate their postponed celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, with a very special event featuring renowned author Heather McGhee. Her book, THE SUM OF US: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together, spent 10 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and was longlisted for the National Book Award. For nearly two decades, Heather helped build the non-partisan "think and do" tank Demos, serving four years as president. An influential voice in the media and an NBC contributor, McGhee regularly appears on NBC’s Meet the Press as well as MSNBC’s Morning Joe, Deadline White House and All In. She has shared her opinions, writing and research in numerous outlets, including the Washington Post, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Politico and National Public Radio. |
| | The Book. Heather McGhee’s specialty is the American economy—and the mystery of why it so often fails the American public. From the financial crisis of 2008 to rising student debt to collapsing public infrastructure, she found a root problem: racism in our politics and policymaking. But not just in the most obvious indignities for people of color. Racism has costs for white people, too. It is the common denominator of our most vexing public problems, the core dysfunction of our democracy and constitutive of the spiritual and moral crises that grip us all. But how did this happen? And is there a way out? More...
Buy a signed copy through the Westport Library here
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| | The Conversation. Mon. May 23, 6pmLocation: TBA
Sign up now for your spot in our in-person discussion group, with expert facilitators at a location to be announced, for a discussion of Heather McGhee's talk, and her book. Although reading the book is not a requirement, we would recommend it. Save The Date! |
| | | 3. Ubuntu Storytelling Concert The Norwalk Art Space: Wed. July 6, 6pm |
| The Concert. Ubuntu embodies a world view that we owe our selfhood to others, that we are first and foremost social beings, that, if you will, no man/woman is an island, or as the African would have it, “One finger cannot pick up a grain.” Ubuntu is, at the same time, a deeply personal philosophy that calls on us to mirror our humanity for each other. To the observer, ubuntu can be seen and felt in the spirit of willing participation, unquestioning cooperation, warmth, openness, and personal dignity demonstrated by the indigenous black population.
Ubuntu Storytellers’ concerts, workshops and retreats are designed to meet you where you are & walk with you to where you want to be. Through storytelling and discussion Ubuntu concerts: - Deepen empathy to increase understanding of impact of racism in your workplace or community.
- Increase awareness of your unconscious paradigms, policies and behaviors that may create exclusionary environments.
- Know what you as an individual and/or company can do to help "...bend the moral arc towards justice."
Save The Date: Reservations will be taken shortly. |
| | The Conversation. Wed. July 13, 6pm
Following the storytelling conversation, that has its own Q&A and brief facilitated discussion, we will hold our own facilitated conversation also at The Norwalk Art Space Wed. July 13, at 7pm.
Save The Date: Reservations will be taken shortly.
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