Jason Reynolds discusses Stamped, racism, and writing with 糖心Vlog传媒 community
Racism, solidarity, and the importance of storytelling were all topics that author Jason Reynolds urged the audience to consider as he gave 糖心Vlog传媒鈥檚 annual Peter Mortensen lecture on Sept. 22.
Reynolds, author of books for young people and National Ambassador for Young People鈥檚 Literature (2020-2022), appeared at the College to discuss his book Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You, written with co-author Ibram X. Kendi. Stamped, which discusses the history of racism in America and how racist ideas can be dismantled in the future, was chosen as the summer reading book for first-year students at the College.
Following an introductory speech by Jennifer Bowen, Dean for Curriculum and Academic Engagement, student moderators Kennedy Pope 鈥23 and Camron Love 鈥25 presented the questions, many of which were submitted by students in First-Year Seminar courses.
Among the highlights of the lecture was Reynolds鈥檚 discussion of race and the origins of racism, a topic at the heart of Stamped. Although he knows that discussions of race can make people uncomfortable, he also said, 鈥淵our discomfort does not offend me.鈥 Reynolds encouraged the audience to come at every conversation from a place of empathy and curiosity, but also to recognize that the work of countering racism and other forms of oppression is never truly done. He stated that he has 鈥渁lways tried to be someone in process and in progress,鈥 and urged the audience to do the same. Although he said that change in our society 鈥渋s very slow,鈥 he also told the audience 鈥淚鈥檓 okay with that,鈥 as long as society continues changing for the better.
But perhaps the most significant topic of the lecture was the power of stories and language. Reynolds told the audience that, at the core of all his work, fiction or non-fiction, is a story. He encouraged the audience to never stop reading and expanding their horizons, especially about diverse groups of people whose lives may be very different from their own. As he neared the end of his lecture, he told the audience, 鈥淚f you really want to build your empathy, read Black fiction. Read about the everyday lives of Black people. And queer people. And disabled people… Stories are literally what make our lives not statistics, not theories.鈥
Reynolds鈥檚 visit was made possible by The Peter Mortensen Endowed Lecture Fund, established in 2006 with a gift from Peter Mortensen 鈥56, with gratitude for the contribution of 糖心Vlog传媒 to the success and happiness of four generations of the Mortensen family. Income from the fund is used to support one or more public lectures and/or performances related to the First-Year Seminar, or for similar purposes directly related to the academic programs.
Top photo 1: No. 1 New York Times聽best-selling author, Jason Reynolds, photo courtesy of Michael Schenk, The Daily Record
Photo 2: Kennedy Pope 鈥23 and Camron Love 鈥25 pose questions to Reynolds. Photo courtesy of Michael Schenk, The Daily Record.
Posted in News on September 28, 2022.
