Scan barcode
A review by jambery
Radical Hope: Letters of Love and Dissent in Dangerous Times by Parnaz Foroutan, Meredith Russo, Francisco Goldman, Cherríe Moraga, Elmaz Abinader, Lisa See, Roxana Robinson, Karen Joy Fowler, Kate Schatz, Jeff Chang, Achy Obejas, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Jewelle L. Gómez, Aliciz Garza, Caro De Robertis, Hari Kunzru, Mona Eltahawy, Faith Adiele, iO Tillett Wright, Reyna Grande, Jane Smiley, Boris Fishman, Katie Kitamura, Cristina García, Claire Messud, Peter Orner, Luis Alberto Urrea, Junot Díaz, Chip Livingston, Mohja Kahf, Aya de León, Celeste Ng
3.0
Four essays I read twice:
What I Mean: Kate Schatz
"Nothing changes if we just feel shitty about being white. And nothing changes if we refuse to talk about it. The opposite of white pride does not have to be white shame. We can't push it away and pretend it's not us. We are not color blind, we are not post-race, we do not get to reject our whiteness because it makes us feel bad."
(Note to self, look up the Grimke sisters, Lucretia Mott, Julia Ward Howe, Emma Goldman, Jane Addams, Viola Liuzzo, Jessie Daniel Ames, Adrienne Rich, Minnie Bruce Pratt, and Polly Spiegel Cowan.)
To the Woman Standing in Line at the Store: Elmaz Abinader
"Many of us have not learned how to lose something."
Dear Millennials: Aya de Leon
"In order to win, we need to be willing to risk, envision, and create, try, fail, and try again. We need to develop a space for leadership development that balances forgiveness with accountability. Only then can we move from being people who criticize power to those who are prepared to wield it to create the just and caring world we envision."
Stay Open: Celeste Ng
"Because being curious is admitting that you don't know, but also that you want to know. That what you don't know is worth knowing. That people you don't know are worth knowing, that they have something to teach you. That learning about them--that encountering new ideas--doesn't threaten you, it enriches you. That what you haven't experienced is worth experiencing. That you approach the world as a trove of things to take in, rather than things you frantically, fearfully wall out. Be kind, be curious, be helpful: what that really means is, stay open."
What I Mean: Kate Schatz
"Nothing changes if we just feel shitty about being white. And nothing changes if we refuse to talk about it. The opposite of white pride does not have to be white shame. We can't push it away and pretend it's not us. We are not color blind, we are not post-race, we do not get to reject our whiteness because it makes us feel bad."
(Note to self, look up the Grimke sisters, Lucretia Mott, Julia Ward Howe, Emma Goldman, Jane Addams, Viola Liuzzo, Jessie Daniel Ames, Adrienne Rich, Minnie Bruce Pratt, and Polly Spiegel Cowan.)
To the Woman Standing in Line at the Store: Elmaz Abinader
"Many of us have not learned how to lose something."
Dear Millennials: Aya de Leon
"In order to win, we need to be willing to risk, envision, and create, try, fail, and try again. We need to develop a space for leadership development that balances forgiveness with accountability. Only then can we move from being people who criticize power to those who are prepared to wield it to create the just and caring world we envision."
Stay Open: Celeste Ng
"Because being curious is admitting that you don't know, but also that you want to know. That what you don't know is worth knowing. That people you don't know are worth knowing, that they have something to teach you. That learning about them--that encountering new ideas--doesn't threaten you, it enriches you. That what you haven't experienced is worth experiencing. That you approach the world as a trove of things to take in, rather than things you frantically, fearfully wall out. Be kind, be curious, be helpful: what that really means is, stay open."