Fall 2020 Book Report

four images of woman dressed as Harry Potter in makeshift costumesThose who know me personally know I love to read. I once created a Facebook album (back when those were a thing) just of photos of me reading. Early in the pandemic, I even recreated some classic book covers with whatever I could find around my house. So when we decided that one of OCE’s new opportunities for 2020 would be action book clubs, I was in!

Action book clubs, or ABCs, (which you can start yourself [pdf]), are virtual communities in which the readers come together to not only learn about the social issues but also engage in critical reflection and civic action.

What does that look like?

This fall I facilitated two ABCs: disability and veterans’ experiences. Both included six to eight members, some of whom came with direct connection to the topic while others came with no connection other than their wish to know more. Over the four meetings that each ABC had this fall, we shared our experiences, built connections, and challenged our own assumptions. We’ve also begun planning our actions for the spring. For a quick glimpse into one of our conversations, here’s a snippet of the posts from our disability in media Padlet:

screen capture of virtual notes including "I also liked how one article mentioned that "the only acceptable type of disability is the one that can be fixed," and that ones that can't be are tragic." and "Stereotype v. construct"

Want to know more about what inspired our conversations? Here are the reading lists from both ABCs.

Disability Book Club

Veterans Book Club

Join Us

If you’re interested in these action book clubs, I invite you to join us this spring. I will continue to facilitate our disability and veterans group, and I will be offering a third ABC focused on racial segregation in housing, including working with the Mapping Prejudice Project. Just fill out this quick interest form.

Categories: Campus Life, Community Engagement & Service, Diversity, Faculty & Staff Blogs
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