The 1619 Project Book Study Group

Beginning February 1, 2022 at 7pm
The 1619 Project with Vincent James and Jessica Mahajan
The 1619 Project is The New York Times Magazine’s award-winning reframing of American history that placed slavery and its continuing legacy at the center of our national narrative. The project, which was initially launched in August of 2019, offered a revealing new origin story for the United States, one that helped explain not only the persistence of anti-Black racism and inequality in American life today, but also the roots of so much of what makes the country unique. 

We will meet six times to discuss this book. You are not required to attend all sessions or to complete all readings to attend. 

Reading Schedule: 
February 1: Preface, Chapters 1-3, pgs XVII - 94
February 15: Chapters 4-6, pgs 97 - 192
March 1: Chapters 7-9 pgs 195 - 273
March 15: Chapters 10-12 pgs 275 - 332
March 29: Chapters 13-15 pgs 335 - 402
NEW DATE~April 19: Chapters 16-18 pgs 405 - 480
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Register on Eventbrite for reminders

April 19, 2022: Church, Music, Healthcare

Resources Presented During Session:
TikTok
Nikole Hannah-Jones responds to white parents who say the book makes their children feel guilt 
​Chris Wallace, ‘1619 Project’ author Nikole Hannah-Jones argue over ‘racist’ World War II generation
Did you know the US Govt paid reparations to white supremacists? by Qasim Rashid Esq. on TikTok
How young is too young to teach children about the reality of racism? by Qasim Rashid Esq. on TikTok

Participant Recommended Resources
City of Evanston Local Reparations the city's website details their process

March 29, 2022: Church, Music, Healthcare

Resources Presented During Session:
Why we need Universal Healthcare in America by Qasim Rashid Esq. on TikTok
America is a secular nation whether you like it or not. Here are the receipts by Qasim Rashid Esq. on TikTok

March 15, 2022: Punishment, Inheritance, Medicine

Resources Presented During Session:

Participant Recommended Resources:
Videos

• The Cotton Pickin' Truth... Still On The Plantation is a documentary film that calls for the re-writing of American history as we know it. The film uncovers modern-day slavery in the Mississippi Delta in 2009. As a result of the film's exposure to many dedicated Mississippians, the state of Mississippi ratified the 13th amendment in totality in February of 2013 (Amazon Prime Video).
• Slavery by Another Name explores new forms of de facto slavery after the Civil War (PBS).
• RACE – THE POWER OF AN ILLUSION: How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Created, clips from California Newsreel's documentary (Vimeo)
• Mr. Anansi's Funeral Home Speech from American Gods series (YouTube) about modern racism, abduction of girls of color, and school-to-prison pipeline

Articles

• Cost Of Racism: U.S. Economy Lost $16 Trillion Because Of Discrimination, Bank Says (NPR)
• Michael Eric Dyson Believes in Individual Reparations (The NY Times Magazine)
• Definition of Whiteness in the United States (Wikipedia) looks at how the definition of "white" has changed over time

Books

• Learning from the Germans: Race and the Memory of Evil by Susan Neiman
• The New Jim Crow
• The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

March 1, 2022: Politics, Citizenship, Self-Defense

February 15, 2022: Fear, Dispossession, Capitalism

February 1: Origins, Democracy, Race, Sugar

Resources Presented:
NY Times: We Respond to the Historians Who Critiqued The 1619 Project
​The 1619 Podcast
The 1619 Project web version of the original publication

Participant Recommended Resources
​Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom, by David W. Blight
​38 Nooses: Lincoln, Little Crow, and the Beginning of the Frontier's End by Scott Berg
Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong

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Past Sessions of The 1619 Project Study Group (from 2020)

For December 10 Session:

• Full Print Essay
  • Read "Sugar" by Khalil Gibran Muhammad p. 70-77
  • Read "Pecan Pioneer" by Tiya Miles p. 76
  • Read "Mass Incarceration" by Bryan Stevenson p. 80-81
  • Read "The Wealth Gap" by Trymaine Lee p. 82-83
  • Read "Hope" by Djeneba Aduayom, Nikole Hannah-Jones, Wadzanai Mhute p. 86-93
• Podcast Episode 5: The Land of Our Fathers Part 2​

Resources:
1619 in the New York Times Magazine: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/14/magazine/1619-america-slavery.html

1619 Video Introduction: https://pulitzercenter.org/builder/lesson/analyze-and-discuss-1619-project-video-introduction-27998

1619 Podcast: www.nytimes.com/2020/01/23/podcasts/1619-podcast.html

Full Print Essay https://pulitzercenter.org/sites/default/files/the_idea_of_america_full_essay.pdf

Excerpt from "The Idea of America" by Nikole Hannah-Jones

This group will meet bi-weekly starting 9/17 (7-8pm) for six sessions. Note: no class on 11/26 for Thanksgiving.
9/17, 10/1, 10/15, 10/29, 11/12, 12/10

Register for the sessions to get a reminder: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-1619-project-study-group-tickets-117335881781

September 17 Study Group Session

October 1 Study Group Session

For October 15 Session:

• Full Print Essay
  • Read "Chained Migration: How Slavery Made Its Way West" p. 22
  • Read "The Middle Passage" by Clint Smith p. 28
• Podcast Episode 3

For October 29 Session: 

• Full Print Essay 
  • Read "Capitalism" by Matthew Desmond (p. 30-40)
  • Read "Mortgaging the Future" by Mehrsa Baradaran p. 32
• Podcast Episode 4: How the Bad Blood Started

For November 12 Session: 

• Full Print Essay 
  • Read "Good as Gold" by Mehrsa Baradaran p.35
  • Read "Fabric of Modernity" by Mehrsa Baradaran p.36
  • Read "Municipal Bonds" by Tiya Miles p.40
  • Read "Undemocratic Democracy" by Janelle Boule p.50-55
• Podcast Episode 5: The Land of Our Fathers Part 1