After the November 2020 success of a multi-library collaboration that brought The New York Times bestselling author and anti-racist scholar Dr. Ibram X. Kendi to Aurora and surrounding communities, this dynamic library partnership has regrouped for another powerhouse event. This time, our sights are on author, poet, and artist, Dr. Eve L. Ewing, who will discuss her work and perspectives on the world in 2021 March 1 at 6 p.m. in a virtual event moderated by Natalie Y. Moore of Chicago’s WBEZ. We offer this event in the spirit of World Social Justice Day to be a highlight and to amplify the work of those whose art and perspectives help advance equity and inclusion, both in our communities and globally.
World Social Justice Day was established by the United Nations in 2007, with the recognition that “…social development and social justice are indispensable for the achievement and maintenance of peace and security within and among nations and that, in turn, social development and social justice cannot be attained in the absence of peace and security, or in the absence of respect for all human rights and fundamental freedoms” (www.un.org/en/observances/social-justice-day)
Ewing is an assistant professor at the University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration. Her work has been published in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, and The New York Times, among others.
Growing up in Chicago and having taught in the Bronzeville neighborhood public schools for several years, Ewing’s work has focused on historical and contemporary Chicago and retelling the popular narratives that misrepresent, marginalize, and directly harm black people and other individuals of color living in the Chicago. Her work includes Ghosts in the Schoolyard: Racism and School Closings on Chicago’s South Side, which is a chronicle the mass closures of 2013 which disproportionately has an impact on communities of color on the South Side.
Her poetry collection 1919 tells the story of the Chicago race riots of that year, which were part of a larger national tragedy referred to as “The Red Summer.” Ewing expertly and masterfully illuminates, through a critical lens, the popular white narrative offered around this event in direct contrast to a black-centered poetic perspective of this race-based violence.
Moderator Natalie Y. Moore grew up in Chicago, and writes for WBEZ, Chicago’s NPR member station. She is the author of The South Side: A Portrait of Chicago and American Segregation, winner of the 2016 Chicago Review of Books award for nonfiction and a Buzzfeed best nonfiction book of 2016.
With credentials such as these, a conversation between Ewing and Moore is a natural and compelling pairing. Registration for this event is at www.aurorapubliclibrary.org/event/4828267.
To further engage around Ewing and her work, join us for a 1919 book discussion for teens in grades 6 through 12 Tuesday, March 2 at 6 p.m., or for adults Monday, March 8 at 10 a.m.. To register for the teen discussion, visit www.aurorapubliclibrary.org/event/4841400 and to register for the adult discussion, see www.aurorapubliclibrary.org/event/4834558.1919 is available at the Aurora Public Library District in both digital and physical formats. Visit the library website, or call 630-264-4117 to get your hands on a copy today!
Thank you to the independent booksellers who are supporting this event through online sales. Although the virtual event will not include book signing, we encourage you to browse the selection of Dr. Eve L. Ewing and Moore’s titles at the Book Bin at bookbinnorthbrook.indielite.org/event/fireside-chat-dr-eve-l-ewing, the Book Stall at www.thebookstall.com/dr-eve-l-ewing-conversation-natalie-moore, or Semicolon at www.semicolonchi.com/eve-ewing-lib.
This program is offered in multi-library collaboration with: Addison Public Library District, Arlington Heights Memorial Library, Cook Memorial Public Library District, Gail Borden Public Library District, Glenview Public Library, Highland Park Public Library, Lake Villa Public Library, Oak Park Public Library, Skokie Public Library, Schaumburg Township District Library and Wilmette Public Library.