GET WOKE! Reading Group: The Trayvon Generation
Wed, May 03, 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm
MEETING
Get Woke! Catskills is hosting a discussion of part one of “The Trayvon Generation” by Elizabeth Alexander on Wednesday, May 3 from 6-7:30 p.m. at Bushel. Refreshments will be served. Register HERE.
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About the Book. In the midst of civil unrest in the summer of 2020 and following the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, Elizabeth Alexander—one of the great literary voices of our time—turned a mother’s eye to her sons’ and students’ generation and wrote a celebrated and moving reflection on the challenges facing young Black America. Originally published in the New Yorker, the essay incisively and lovingly observed the experiences, attitudes, and cultural expressions of what she calls “the Trayvon Generation,” who even as children could not be shielded from the brutality that has affected the lives of so many Black people.
The Trayvon Generation expands the viral essay that spoke so resonantly to the persistence of race as an ongoing issue at the center of the American experience. Alexander looks to our past and future with profound insight, brilliant analysis, and mighty heart, interweaving her voice with groundbreaking works of art by some of our most extraordinary artists. At this crucial time in American history, when we reckon with who we are as a nation and how we move forward, Alexander’s lyrical prose gives us perspective informed by historical understanding, her lifelong devotion to education, and an intimate grasp of the visioning power of art.
This breathtaking book is essential reading and an expression of both the tragedies and hopes for the young people of this era that will surely be embraced by those leading the movement for change and anyone rising to meet the moment.