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PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2017
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City
and County of Denver
Mayor
Michael B. Hancock
Amber
Miller, Communications Director
Jenna
Espinoza, Deputy Communications Director
O:
720.865.9044
Mayor
Hancock, Partners Launch Citywide Conversation on Race and Social Justice
‘Citizen’
Author Claudia Rankine to join DENVER TALKS
DENVER – Mayor Michael B. Hancock, in partnership with Lighthouse Writers
Workshop and NEA Big Read, today announced DENVER TALKS, a citywide effort to
bring the community together for safe discussions around race, justice and the
award-winning book Citizen: An American Lyric by MacArthur
Fellow Claudia Rankine.
“Now more than ever we need to tear down the barriers that divide
us and build up the connections that unite us,” Mayor Hancock said. “Our goal
is to build a more inclusive and accepting community, and to
do that, we need the courage to confront the biases and behaviors that keep us
apart.”
Over the next six weeks, DENVER TALKS will distribute more than
1,200 free copies of Citizen: An American Lyric to
metro-area residents as well as host a number of book discussions, arts events,
guest talks and more. The effort will culminate in a visit from the author, who
will join the Mayor in two free community conversations:
·
November
15, Boettcher Concert Hall, 6:30 p.m.
·
November 16, Metropolitan State
University Tivoli Student Union/Turnhalle, 12:30 p.m.
Both
events are free, but registration is required for
the Nov. 15 event at the Boettcher Concert Hall.
“Metropolitan State University of Denver is proud to partner with
Mayor Hancock, the city of Denver and the other DENVER TALKS sponsors to have
these crucial conversations on race relations and better prepare our youth to
engage in constructive dialogue and action,” said MSU Denver president Dr.
Janine Davidson. “As our Colorado communities become more diverse it will be up
to our future generations to be even more creative in harnessing the positives
that come from diversity and addressing the challenges that come with differing
cultures, mindsets and access to limited resources.”
Thanks to partners
including MSU Denver, Denver Public Schools, The Denver Foundation, Denver
Public Library and Denver County McDonald’s restaurants, there are many ways to
participate in DENVER TALKS. All residents of the metro area are invited to
join in as well as to host their own conversations and events.
The Denver Public
Library has copies of Citizen: An American Lyric available, including
e-books, audio books, and book club kits that include six books and a
discussion guide. Free books will be available at the DENVER TALKS kickoff
party from 2 to 5 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 7, at the Clyfford Still Museum.
In support of reading
and literacy programs across Colorado, more information is available at
McDonald’s restaurants throughout Denver County.
For more information, visit www.denvertalks.org.
About
NEA Big Read
An
initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts
Midwest, the NEA Big Read broadens our understanding of our world, our
communities, and ourselves through the joy of sharing a good book. Showcasing a
diverse range of contemporary titles that reflect many different voices and
perspectives, the NEA Big Read aims to inspire conversation and discovery.
Annually, the program supports approximately 75 dynamic community reading
programs, each designed around a single NEA Big Read book.
About Citizen:
An American Lyric
Rankine's Citizen:
An American Lyric looks at racism today, from everyday slights in the
classroom and at the supermarket to police shootings nationwide to incidents
involving public figures such as Serena Williams and Zinedine Zidane. Using a
blend of essay, image, and poetry, Rankine thoughtfully examines how these
stresses accumulate—impacting the behavior, morale, and potential of
individuals and communities.
Citizen is the
winner of the 2015 PEN Oakland-Josephine Miles Literary Award, the 2015
Hurston/Wright Legacy Award in Poetry, the 2015 Forward Prize for Best
Collection, the 2015 PEN Open Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle
Award in Poetry, and the Poets & Writers' Jackson Poetry Prize. It was
named a best book of 2015 by the Atlantic, the Guardian, NPR, and more.
About
Claudia Rankine
Claudia
Rankine is the author of five collections of poetry, two plays, and numerous
video collaborations. Rankine’s Citizen: An American Lyric won
the PEN Open Book Award, the PEN Literary Award, the NAACP Award, and the
National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry. Rankine is the recipient of a
MacArthur Fellowship, the Jackson Poetry Prize, and fellowships from the Lannan
Foundation and the NEA. She teaches at Yale University.